Comfort
by Lady Aren
Summary: A one-night stand between Sakura and Itachi turns into something more than what either of them had ever hoped for. Add an unhappy Sasuke, ANBU operations and a clan with malicious intentions into the mix, they were in for a hell of a ride. AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Story Background: Set in AU, where the Uchiha Massacre did not happen. However, the Nine-tails attack on Konoha as well as the death of Yondaime did. Take note that some characters, namely Sasuke and other Uchiha members, have thus slightly different personalities than the manga. I've taken into consideration how Sasuke would have developed into a different kind of man with Itachi present as his aniki.**

**Sakura is eighteen; Itachi twenty-three. (Please do the other math for yourselves.)**

**This story isn't rated M for joke. Sexual scenes are depicted, and if you're uncomfortable with those, I suggest you not read this. Also, this story really isn't about angst, so don't worry about depressing situations or anything. There is, however, drama, as what would usually happen in life, so there are definitely ups and downs! I try to make this as lighthearted as possible, though it's definitely _not_ crack. ^^**

**I'll be making updates fortnightly, unless I'm lucky enough to have a less hectic schedule for the week. :)**

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><p>The man's lips were attached to her neck like a bloodsucker. He was simply trying <em>too<em> hard to turn her on, and it only served to deepen her disgust with the man who'd cornered her against the wall.

He smelled of booze and sweat, a revolting combination, and all she wanted to do was snap his neck in half.

_Remember what you were supposed to do. _

Kimura Hosnin was the secretary of the daimyo of Waves, and she'd been sent to retrieve vital information regarding their next political move that may very well pose a threat to Konoha. She supposed that her pink hair immediately dispelled the possibility of her being a ninja in most people's minds, and she had no qualms utilizing the fact.

She lowered her voice to a seductive husk, "Is there somewhere more private?"

The man took a reprieve from her neck and smirked at her, introducing a sickening feel in her belly. Kami, she really needed to get this over with.

"Aren't you the little slut," he commented airily, assuming that her arousal was genuine. "I know just the place."

_Of course you do. Why else would I choose to hit on you here?_

He led her straight to the room she'd wanted in. The room had the most efficient escape route, and after she'd extracted the relevant information from him, she'd take some of his money and leave with no trace, allowing him to make his own assumptions of her and reduce any impression she might have left on him. It was always better to let the enemy think he'd slept with a whore instead of a woman on a mission. They'd promptly forget it.

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><p>Sakura arrived in Konoha a little after three in the afternoon. The sun was at its hottest, and Sakura could feel the beads of perspiration crusading down her back, pooling in between the valley of her breasts and clinging around her neck. She'd made it back in good time to take a much needed reprieve before she had to show up at Kakashi's birthday bash. It was more of an excuse for a gathering, really. Everybody went their separate ways after graduating to jounin, and even though they'd sometimes be thrown together for missions, they'd individually diverged pretty much from each other.<p>

If she wanted to keep awake until three in the morning, she really _needed _that afternoon nap.

She placed her mask over her face and made her way briskly to the Hokage Tower, and reported her findings directly to the leader of the village.

Sakura didn't particularly like seduction missions, but she wasn't adverse to it either. In fact, she _excelled_ at it. Her exotic emerald eyes, high cheekbones and naturally pouty lips attracted men's attention effortlessly, and her prey often came to her of their own accord, saving her the chase. Her pink hair easily belied her strength, and her feminine hands only accentuated her female sexuality, hiding any evidence that she was a ninja trained not only to heal but to kill.

Being one of the few females in ANBU, she was assigned to more seduction missions than she could count, and she hadn't even been in the Black Ops for half a year. She was beginning to wonder if Tsunade had forgotten that she was training under the Sannin as a medic-nin, not a seduction mistress, since her shishou was the one who kept sending her to all these missions. Since seduction missions were usually solo missions, she'd barely had the chance to work with the other ANBU members yet.

"Thank you, Sakura. You are dismissed. Do not forget to report to the hospital tomorrow afternoon."

"Yes, Hokage-sama," Sakura replied respectfully. She formed a few hand seals and teleported herself home, not in the mood to face the blazing sun again.

Once inside her house, Sakura peeled off her soaked ANBU uniform and took a long, comfortable shower. The warm, clean feeling that engulfed Sakura as she stepped out of the bathroom guided her to the soft bed, and she promptly fell asleep.

Hours later, Sakura awoke to an incessant knocking on her door. Not bothering about her disheveled appearance, she opened the door to reveal a very excited blonde and a subdued Uchiha.

"Hey guys."

"Come on, Sakura," Naruto said happily as he bounded into her house without invitation, "we still need to get Kakashi a present."

Team 7 stopped calling Kakashi _sensei_ a long time ago. Ever since Kakashi returned to the Black Ops and Team 7 went their separate ways, the relationship between them changed. Kakashi was now an equal.

"Hn," the black-haired man nodded in agreement, following the blonde's lead.

"Yeah, sure. Wait here," Sakura rubbed her eyes sleepily, returning to her room to change into a more suitable attire. She'd gotten a solid three hours of sleep, and she supposed that was more than she could ask for.

Rummaging through her closet, Sakura pulled out a tight-fitting black dress that hugged her curves respectfully, dispelling the otherwise slutty look that she'd have portrayed. Sex but no skank, she liked to think. It ended appropriately mid-thigh, and its netted long sleeves gave her the slightest protection from the cold.

Next, Sakura attacked her hair and drew it into a messy ponytail, securing it with a black ribbon. She didn't bother with make-up – she wasn't looking to get laid tonight, she just wanted to spend time with her friends. Applying lip gloss to her chapped lips, Sakura deemed herself presentable enough to attend a birthday bash.

Heading out to the living room, she observed what her sleepy eyes hadn't bothered with before. Naruto was wearing his jounin uniform – _how boring_ – and Sasuke was dressed in polo tee and jeans. She grunted in complaint; Sasuke could simply throw on shirt and jeans and still look hot – it was just plain unfair.

She'd gotten over Sasuke years ago – experience and the shinobi life did that to a person. They'd tried dating when they first became jounin, but quickly realized that they were better off being friends. Physical attraction was not a problem between the two of them, but Sakura felt that their relationship became stagnant after a while, and preferred not to heat sheets with the man anymore. She didn't know how Sasuke felt, but since he didn't make any objections to the change in their arrangements, she supposed that he'd felt the same way.

Naruto only found out about them after they'd broken up – if you could call it _that_ – and was simply relieved that his teammates weren't screwing each other anymore. He said he felt _weird_.

Sakura scoffed at the memory, drawing the attention of the two males who were watching her television.

"You look awesome, Sakura-chan!" Naruto said unabashedly, leaping up from the sofa. "Yosh, let's go!"

Sasuke switched off the television and stood up as well. He eyed Sakura appreciatively, reminding Sakura why she'd slept with him in the first place. He made the act of checking her out a huge turn on, unlike the damned secretary of the daimyo.

Sakura slid on her comfortable black heels and locked the door. With her heels she was almost as tall as her teammates, and feeling affectionate for the both of them, she linked their arms together.

"What are we buying for Kakashi?"

"I was thinking the latest limited edition of Icha Icha Paradise," Naruto answered cheerfully. "Teme agreed with me."

Sakura sighed. Evidently, Jiraiya still managed to find the time between spying on Akatsuki and reporting to the Hokage to write smut. Kudos to the pervert.

"Are you sure Kakashi wouldn't have bought it for himself already?" Sakura asked.

Naruto's face fell. "We didn't think of that."

"Oi, don't drag me down with you, dobe," Sasuke retorted.

"Let's think of something else," Sakura interrupted before Naruto could argue with Sasuke. She swore that being eighteen did _nothing_ to reduce the immaturity of the two.

"Kunai?" Sasuke suggested.

"Typical, but fine. I'm too tired to think of anything else."

"We could get him dog food, you know, for his dogs," Naruto suggested, promptly receiving two identical condescending glares from his teammates.

"You're the one who thinks kunai's typical, Sakura!"

"Act your age, you idiot," Sasuke countered for her.

"Shut up, Sasuke-teme!"

Sakura sighed as her teammates bickered all the way to the pub.

Upon entering the pub, Sakura spotted the masked man sitting at the table surrounded by his friends and colleagues. Kakashi met her eyes and gave her a small crinkle of an eye as acknowledgement and caught the present Sakura had thrown across the room to him.

He waved his hands in thanks to the three of them, and Sakura felt herself being dragged to the table where her friends were occupying. She slid in easily between Ino and Tenten, who were debating whether to apply for the upcoming ANBU examinations.

"What do you think, Sakura?" Ino asked, including her into the conversation immediately.

Her friends couldn't know about her involvement in ANBU. Nobody but ANBU members knew who was in ANBU. They were sworn to secrecy, after all, and served only the Hokage and no one else. Of course, everyone has their own speculations once a shinobi stops taking missions from the village and still disappear for long periods of time, but Sakura had the guise of going on medical related trips, thus her involvement in ANBU was not as apparent as, say, Kakashi's. However, as a general rule, ANBU weren't supposed to talk about ANBU.

But that didn't mean she couldn't voice her opinion to her friends.

"Sounds shady."

Ino rolled her eyes. "That's the whole point of the organization isn't it?"

"You're Hokage-sama's apprentice, aren't you?" Tenten said, "Do you know much about ANBU?"

"About as much as you do, Tenten-san." Sakura wasn't as well acquainted with the weaponry mistress as she was with Ino, who was her best friend. But having talked to Lee more times than she would have liked, she knew a little bit about the woman. The most straightforward definition for Tenten was that she was dating the famous Hyuuga Neji. Nobody in the Hyuuga clan knew about it though, since the clan was fiercely protective of the Byakugan for any member to be involved with someone outside of the clan. Sakura, being on good terms with Neji without Tenten's knowledge, supposed that it was their risk, and chose to not have anything to do with it.

Tenten spotted Neji and Lee enter the pub, and politely excused herself to meet her teammates.

"How was the mission?" Ino, who was a medic as well, knew that her 'medical trips' were just a veil. Also, it helped that the blonde bombshell was a member of the elite organization.

"Disgusting."

Ino nodded in understanding. Being a kunoichi with good looks meant you were usually sent on seduction missions. But the missions were vital – god knows how many wars were prevented because of them.

"I want a drink to relax," Sakura stated, getting up from her seat.

Ino nodded, promptly seeking out Shikamaru and Choji to gossip. Well, it was more of a one-way thing – she talked, they listened dutifully.

Sakura leaned her hip lazily against the bar top as she ordered her drink. "What's your specialty?" She asked the bartender.

The bartender stared at her blankly, and she noticed the way his eyes traced her outfit, coming to rest at her breasts. She smirked, and waited for him to gather himself. Maybe she was going to get laid tonight after all. He was kind of cute.

"Try the Green Vesper." A smooth, almost velvet voice came from her right and she turned, only to gulp lightly as she reeled from the shock to her system. Uchiha Itachi was perched elegantly on the bar stool, swirling his Vesper gracefully as he regarded her. But what shocked her wasn't the presence of the ANBU captain; it was the way he was looking at her. His onyx eyes were dark with desire, his smile full of promise and he was emanating absolute masculine deliciousness. Sakura couldn't help but react.

"What if I don't like it?" Sakura collected herself in time to deliver a proper speech.

"Perhaps you'd like to have a taste of mine?" Itachi suggested in a low voice, as if he'd been prepared for her answer all along.

"Perhaps." And Sakura held her gaze with the ANBU captain, forgetting about the bartender who'd just about recovered from his reverie.

Itachi admired her beautiful face. He hadn't expected the reaction his body had upon meeting the emerald green eyes, but he couldn't help but interrupt the woman and the bartender. The way the bartender had expressed his interest in the female made him wonder what sort of woman could make a man lose his professionalism like that. Well, other than the pink hair, of course.

He figured that it was her full lips and abundant chest, but upon closer inspection, Itachi knew it was the way the woman held herself, full of confidence and poise. He'd also recognized her as the Hokage's apprentice, but never before had he seen her in casual clothes. The ANBU uniform she usually wore hid her alluring figure perfectly, and she usually had her mask on. Her relaxed features also gave a soft, feminine glow to her face, a description that he would never have associated with the usually serious medic.

Right now, however, Haruno Sakura was wearing a black dress that accentuated her figure nicely, making her sexy but not slutty. He knew she knew it as well, which was probably why she was wearing the dress. He liked the way her ponytail exposed her neck, drawing attention to the smoothness and creaminess of it. He _really_ wanted to touch her.

He held out his glass to her, waiting for her reaction. She closed her delicate hands around his glass, their fingers brushing briefly as he released his hold. Not breaking eye contact with him, she slowly took a sip.

Her lips curled into an almost feral-like grin, and he felt another jolt to his system. Now he wanted to kiss her.

Uchiha Itachi usually had better control of his emotions, but he found that he wasn't in the mood to control them tonight. He was completely at ease since it wasn't the first time he was physically attracted to a woman, and he wasn't about to let it go, not when the pink-haired female was looking at him with an intensity to match his own.

"This tastes good."

"Hn." _You'll taste even better._

"I'll take this then," Sakura smirked, shifting her body weight from the bar top.

Itachi reached out and grabbed her wrist. It was a gentle grip, one that was firm, but loose enough that should she decide his advances were unwanted, she could break free easily. She remained, and waited expectantly.

"Perhaps I could buy you one." _And maybe take you home._

Sakura shook her head, her ponytail swishing slightly. "I want this one."

"Then maybe we can compromise."

"How?"

"We'll share."

Sakura smiled naughtily, and in one swift motion, downed the remainder of his drink.

"Oops?" She widened her eyes in fake innocence.

Itachi growled, and in the next instant, Sakura found herself pressed against a wall in the back alley. Well, she supposed they were _pretty_ close to the back door, but she certainly wasn't expecting such speed from the man clad in jeans and a collared shirt. His mouth descended to hers and in a matter of seconds Sakura found herself in a full make-out session in the back alley with Uchiha Itachi.

Boy, the man knew how to kiss. His hot breath was a mixture of the drink he'd been nursing earlier and something else entirely his own flavor. Sakura wasn't sure she could put a name to it, but it didn't matter at the moment because all she knew was that she _really liked it_. His tongue traced her bottom lip erotically, and coupled with his wandering hands that were heating up every inch of her skin, Sakura decided to allow him entrance.

She opened her mouth slightly and met his tongue with her own. She wasn't about to let him in without a fight. He wanted in, he had to prove himself worthy.

As if catching on to her game, Itachi slanted his mouth over hers to cover her more fully, his hand sliding up under her skirt to draw lazy circles on the side of her thigh. Being the Uchiha he was, Itachi naturally won the mini battle that Sakura had instigated. Itachi smirked as Sakura slowly wound her hands around his neck, pressing him into her.

Itachi tasted the steadily diminishing Vesper in her mouth, coupled with something a lot sweeter. He couldn't identify it at first, but then he realized that it was simply the taste of Sakura. As he explored the warm cavern of her mouth, he greedily lapped up the gentle sweetness that seemed endless.

Eventually they needed to come up for air; despite their immense ninja training, it didn't mean that they could actually go _without_ breathing. Itachi broke them apart, but maintained his face within millimeters of her face as he directed his gaze straight into her eyes.

"Oops." Itachi stated, repeating her previous remark. Itachi struggled to maintain the space between them as he felt Sakura's fingers stroke through his hair. He needed to know her answer before he could decide his next move.

Sakura wasn't the slightest bit shy when returning his gaze. In fact, she seemed to find an answer of sorts in his immobile state. She maneuvered his hands to rest more firmly around her waist, and proceeded to make a few hand seals that Itachi recognized immediately, and within seconds, he found himself in an unfamiliar apartment, presumably hers.

But then he looked outside the window, and he recognized the view. This room was the presidential suite of the grandest hotel in Konoha. Sakura grinned at him as she led him through the double doors into the bedroom, where an enormous king-sized bed dominated the space.

Sakura circled her arms around his neck. "There's a bar downstairs if you still want that Vesper," she purred.

"I think I'll just salvage what I have left," Itachi whispered huskily, slipping his hands under her dress and lifting it up, caressing her ass cheeks as he pushed the dress up her body, and over her head. And she stood, in his arms, clad in only her underwear. Warmth spread through his lower abdomen and Itachi felt himself grow hard at the sight before him.

He heard the sound of a zipper and felt his jeans loosen and drop to the floor, his boxers barely hiding his arousal.

Itachi's well-trained sense of smell alerted him to the slight arousal emanating from the pink-haired female, and he could no longer resist the urge to ravish her completely. Without any effort, he threw both of them onto the bed, locking his lips firmly with hers as he trailed his hands up her body to find her breasts. Slipping the straps off her delicate shoulder, he unhooked the clasp and flung the bra somewhere else so that there was no longer any barrier between his hands and her flesh.

He kneaded the full, round mound slowly, building up pressure to tease her already hard nipples into an even harder peak. He felt Sakura nudge his arms, and he lifted them willingly, allowing her to remove his shirt. He resumed kissing her, his lips forming an exploratory trail to her neck, where he suckled and placated for the longest time before moving southwards.

Taking a nipple into his mouth, he pressed his tongue erotically on the hardened peak, meanwhile engulfing her entire breast with his mouth to build on the pressure. He heard Sakura stifle a moan, but she couldn't stop the reaction of her body as it writhed under him in absolute pleasure. He could scent the increasing intensity of her arousal, driving him faster in his own state of arousal.

He wanted to see her lose control.

The hand that was kneading the breast his mouth wasn't preoccupied with soothed its way downwards, until it came to her heated core, where he ruthlessly plunged two fingers in without warning. Sakura's breath hitched and she managed half a scream, fuelling Itachi's imagination of how she would sound when she screamed in pleasure.

He opened his fingers to stretch her, adding pressure to her inner walls, his fingers enjoying the way her body spasmed at his ministrations and the wetness that he was enwrapped in. He trailed his mouth to her neglected breast as he simultaneously pumped his fingers languorously in and out of her wet core.

She was panting now – her breaths quick and uneven – and she kept tugging at his hair, creating a pleasurable tension for Itachi. He introduced a third finger, and Sakura arched into him, her thighs rubbing deliciously against his manhood. She tugged him up gently to find his lips with hers, and Itachi enjoyed the feeling of her bare breasts being pressed so tightly against his chest, creating a friction that made his body hum delightfully.

Itachi suddenly felt warm hands encircling his cock, sliding up and down his shaft in a steady, unwavering pattern. He broke from Sakura's lips and watched as she boldly continued with her repetitive stroking of his dick, while he continued his motion of his hands in between her legs.

Her green eyes were glazed over from the desire and stimulation, dark with need. She whimpered as he removed his fingers from her pussy. Itachi slowly licked his fingers, enjoying the taste of her arousal all the while watching Sakura closely. He didn't miss the flash of disappointment on her face at the loss of his fingers; neither did he fail to see the way her pupils dilated as her eyes followed his mouth moving along his fingers.

Her hands left his cock as she wrapped them around his neck again and pulled him towards her. He decided that it was time they both got naked, so Itachi peeled off her panties and shrugged off his own boxers. Then, he positioned himself over her so that their sex were aligned, and moved his body to mimic a thrusting motion such that his shaft rubbed deliciously against her nether lips, eliciting a low groan from her that was filled with need.

Sakura matched his rhythm, and Itachi found himself climbing towards the peak once more. Suddenly, Sakura hooked her slender legs around his waist, locked her arms around his neck and pulled herself off the bed such that she had her mouth beside his ear, and she panted harshly, "There really isn't any more foreplay left, Itachi. Fuck me."

He didn't give her any time to react. He buried his face in her neck and plunged, letting a growl escape as her wetness surrounded him. She was tight, wet, and smelled like heaven. The combination was almost enough to make him come on the spot, but sheer male pride prevented him from doing so.

He only gave her a split second to accommodate his size before he pulled out and swiftly thrust into her once more. He kept a steady pace at first, enjoying the friction between the two of them, and the sound of her uncontrolled moans in his ear. But when her moans turned into gasps he figured it was time to increase the heat.

His rhythm quickened, and Sakura easily moved her hips to meet him, beat for beat, thrust for thrust, until both of them toppled over the edge. In his final thrust, her walls contracted tightly around him pulling him in deeper, stronger, and he finally gave in to the pleasure.

"Sakura," he rasped as he came inside her.

She bit into his shoulder to muffle her scream.

Both bodies spent, Itachi laid his bigger frame over her smaller one, his cock still limp inside her. He didn't feel like moving, and he really liked her scent. He idly sucked on her neck and undid her hair to run his fingers through it.

"Mm," Sakura hummed, still floating on cloud nine on the after-sex lethargy. And here, she thought lazily, that she'd known all the ins and outs of sex. Itachi just proved her wrong, and she was very, _very_ glad he did. The man really knew how to please, when to please and _where_ to please. She hadn't thought there was such a thing called over-stimulation until Itachi demonstrated just how bloody _long _foreplay could be. Sakura was pretty sure she'd had at least three mini climaxes before he'd even entered her.

Itachi's suckling on her neck was sending a continuous train of tingling sensations down her spine to her toes, lighting a heated path along the way. She tightened her walls around his dick still inside her, enjoying the intrusion. She raked her nails along his back, tracing his defined muscles appreciatively.

She gently eased his head up to level with hers, green eyes clashing with black ones. She lifted her hips seductively, pulling him deeper into her, and smirked at the way his body shivered against hers. And she saw the desire in his eyes again. For her.

She brought his head down to hers, lips melding together in another ferocious battle.

Then without warning, Sakura flipped them over, so that she was on top.

"I say let's go again."

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><p><strong>Do review and let me know what you think!<strong>

**xoxo,  
><strong>**Lady Aren**


	2. Chapter 2

**Apologies for the week-late update. I've been in camps for orientation into my university for the past two weeks. Do try to understand.**

**Otherwise, enjoy this chapter! :)**

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><p>People always say that the morning after a one-night stand was the most awkward of situations ever, but not for Sakura, who'd been in the situation enough times not to feel out of place. That was not to say she was a whore of any kind – she was extremely picky about her partners, after all – but she'd figured that when two adults have a mutual understanding, there just wasn't anything to feel uneasy about. She was pretty sure the mutual understanding was there between her and Itachi.<p>

Thus, Sakura wasn't surprised to wake up with Itachi's arms securely around her waist, chest pressed comfortably against her back. Neither was she inclined to move from her position. She sleepily counted his pulse.

"I hope you're not looking for round four."

He nipped her neck. "And if I was?"

"Then it depends on how well you can wake me up."

His movement was so fast that Sakura didn't have time to prepare herself for the intrusion. He'd lifted her leg up easily and pushed himself into her from behind.

"Oh, fuck."

She was dry, and without lubrication his sudden entrance stung. But he stayed still within her, and the warmth emanating from his cock was a pleasurable one that reminded her why she climaxed three times before she was satisfied the previous night.

Itachi turned her head towards his and captured her lips, his hands cupping her breasts to play with her nipples. Sakura briefly wondered if her morning breath might turn him off, but when his tongue battled for entry she promptly left the unimportant thought at the back of her mind. His mouth was a little stale at first, but they got past that easily as they consumed each other.

Heat pooled at the bottom of her stomach, and she hooked her leg behind his hips to draw him deeper inside her. She groaned as his penetration deepened, her walls contracting frivolously.

Soon, however, Sakura found that his presence inside her was not enough.

She broke from his heated kiss, "You need to _move_."

He was a little disgruntled at her demand, but apparently agreed with her as he sealed his lips with hers again and thankfully began to thrust in and out of her. The strain in her neck built up as Sakura felt herself nearing the edge, and she broke away from his kiss again. Instead she arched into him as he quickened his pace and latched onto her neck instead.

She pressed the heel of her feet into his lower back to force more of his shaft into her, and she finally climaxed, clamping down on him fiercely, and screamed his name when he pinched her nipples.

"_Itachi._"

She felt him shoot his seed inside her, enjoying the warmth that developed in her belly.

Sakura pulled away from him, laying on her back, her right arm numbed from the strenuous activity. Itachi turned so that he was on his back as well.

The only sound in the room was their heavy breathing.

Sakura nudged him. "We need to leave soon. Housekeeping will be making their rounds."

"And they won't wonder what happened to the bed when this room was supposed to be unoccupied?"

"Sweet of you to think of it, but I've got it," Sakura purred, stroking his hair before getting off the bed and went in search of her underwear and dress.

Itachi followed suit, moving off the bed languidly, reaching out a grateful hand as Sakura handed him his clothes.

They dressed in silence – not uncomfortable, but not familiar either. It was simply silence in its pure form, with neither party attempting to correct it. The shuffling of clothes eventually came to an end as Sakura glided into the bathroom to fix her dress, as well as her hair. It was mussed up after their long tussle in bed, so Sakura didn't attempt any effort in styling it. She was just glad they were out of her face. After splashing cold water to wipe fatigue and remnants of sleep off her face, she exited the bathroom.

She cocked her head towards the door she'd just emerged from. "Need it?"

"I would prefer the comforts of my own bathroom, thank you."

Sakura nodded and made a couple of hand seals that Itachi had recognized last night in the back alley. "See you," were her last words as she evaporated.

Itachi smirked as he followed suit, his room in the Uchiha compound his destination.

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><p>Sakura had two hours to freshen up and ready herself for a twelve hour shift deep into the wee hours of the morning. Her thighs and calves were aching from all the activities she'd been doing, but her body hummed with so much pleasure that Sakura felt the trade off was worth it. She allowed a grin to creep onto her face, but the indulgence wouldn't last long.<p>

Sakura idly wondered if sex could get any better than that. She was by no means short of experience in the area, and yet she'd never felt so alive after it before. Rather than tire her out, it fuelled her, in a twisted sense.

Sakura sank further into the bath, the heat loosening her muscles like a masseuse, the haze that the hot water created glazing her over, giving her mind ample opportunity to relieve her experiences the previous night.

The alarm clock chose to go off in that second, snapping Sakura out of her reverie. Work.

Getting out of the bath unhurriedly, Sakura toweled off, and left a wet trail to her closet as she picked out her work clothes. They were simple, efficient, but disturbingly white. She always exchanged the white shirt for a black one, because dressing in all white was just too stifling, and Sakura preferred a reminder of who she was.

Dropping her towel to the floor, Sakura studied her naked form in the mirror. There were light bruises on her thighs and waist, but they didn't matter. She liked the reminder of what they'd done. Her eyes fell onto the tattoo of a silhouette of a cat, her mark as an ANBU. Once a Black Op, always a Black Op, her shishou had said as she'd personally weaved the picture on her student.

Tsunade had thought that the tattoo on their arms marking them as the Black Ops was a silly idea that only invited trouble, so she'd dismissed the tradition and instead assigned each of them their own animal and personally etched the tattoo onto a less conspicuous part of their body. Thus, it enabled ANBUs to live in their own villages without their masks on, giving them a life, instead of simply rendering them to emotionless soldiers. They were, of course, still of elite status and were not allowed to tell anyone of their involvement in the organization. Family members and close friends definitely suspected, but it was a taboo subject to bring up, and thus everyone was tightly sealed.

ANBU had really changed her. Once she knew what they did and how they did it, it really made her sick, but she knew such things were necessary. She'd learned to take it in stride, and even managed to steel her emotions against the matter, but she could not deny that it made her more cynical of the world.

But that, she supposed, was part of growing up, especially as ninja. She loved how genin were so innocent, so passionate, and when she was a jounin teacher she gave them all she could so that when the dark side of reality came creeping up on them, they would continue to stay strong in their beliefs. She was very proud that they did, and were able to hold their own, and she liked to believe that she contributed to an important part of it.

But when Tsunade discovered her ability to not just fight, but to seduce, Sakura was taken off the teaching roster and fully initiated into the world of Black Ops. Her shishou had promised her her students someday, but right now the village needed her more. Sakura couldn't argue with the Hokage, and quietly accepted her shishou's decision.

Sakura sighed, and proceeded to dress herself. Looking like the professional medic-nin she was, Sakura locked her apartment and decided that she had enough time to take a stroll towards the hospital instead of using the transportation jutsu. The jutsu didn't take a lot of chakra, but you never know when in the hospital you would need every last drop in your reserve. As a commitment to her patients, Sakura always played it safe.

The walk didn't take long, and the moment she entered the building, the familiar smell of antiseptic hit her squarely in the face. She inhaled deeply, clocking in. This was her element.

And then the action started.

* * *

><p>As the cold water from the shower hit his face and trickled its way down his body to his toes, Itachi thought about Sakura. The pink-haired woman had never caught his attention the way she did the night before, and he couldn't figure out why.<p>

Then it hit him.

Because she was always so professional. Her face was relaxed that night, and it told him that she was out to enjoy herself. Whenever he had come in contact with her, it was usually in the presence of the Hokage, or at the hospital with people milling around, in other words, when she was working.

When she was on the job, she was _on the job_, and Itachi realized that he liked that attribute in the woman. He also knew that Sakura was in ANBU, and so far word had been going around that she was _the _person to go for if you wanted a successful seduction mission, man or woman. Itachi smirked. He used to hold that title, until he was promoted to ANBU captain.

But when she was just Sakura, off the roll, _god_ she was a goddess. The way her emerald eyes sparkled with mischief and naughty promises was what drew him in last night. And he really liked how her lips had quirked into that knowing smile as she downed his Vesper. It told him that he was in for the time of his life.

And the woman had passion. She responded to him with an intensity that most women weren't capable of, and she kept up with him like she was his equal. She challenged but compromised, she took but she also gave.

Her lithe form was toned, and even looked fragile, but Itachi knew that ANBU operatives were anything but weak. Her hands may not be as big as his, but he was sure they could break anything he could. You didn't expect anything less from Tsunade's apprentice, of course.

Itachi grunted as he stepped out of the cold shower, toweling off lightly before putting on the gear that he had prepared for his training with Sasuke today. He meandered into the kitchen for something to eat before bottoming out his energy again on his brother. Sasuke never learned the meaning of going easy during trainings.

Mikoto was sitting at the kitchen table, wisps of smoke rising out of her cup of hot tea, and another bowl of udon placed at an empty seat in front of her.

"Thank you, okaa-san."

"The clothes you wore yesterday smelled like a woman. Are you planning to bring home a bride soon?" Trust Mikoto to go straight to the point.

"Why are you so sure it is a woman?" Itachi asked as he slurped the noodles.

"Because it didn't smell like a man." _Well, that was helpful._

"Hn." Itachi continued to slurp on his noodles.

"Well?" Mikoto demanded.

"Yes, it was a woman."

"The other question, you insolent boy." Mikoto's tone held no malice, but she was not relenting on her demand for an answer.

"No bride, okaa-san." Itachi finally answered the question as his younger brother strolled in.

"Are you done, aniki? I actually want to get some training in some time today."

Itachi finished the contents in the bowl and thanked his mother for the food. Mikoto just rolled her eyes. "Thank me with a bride, Itachi."

"Hn," Itachi replied out of respect as he trailed behind Sasuke out the door.

Once they were out of the house, however, Sasuke dropped into pace beside him.

"It's Sakura, isn't it?"

The Uchiha clan should never let the Inuzuka clan know that their sense of smell were on par with theirs.

"Why do you think so?"

"We were together for a while. I know her scent."

"You never brought her home."

"It wasn't serious."

"Do you wish that it were?"

When Sasuke didn't answer immediately, Itachi turned his attention to his younger brother.

"It was never my choice, aniki."

Itachi didn't want to ask what Sasuke implied. It must have been painful enough for his younger brother to talk about his relationship with his teammate like this; Itachi didn't see the need to add more salt to wound.

"Hn."

"Was it a one-time thing?"

Itachi wanted desperately to ignore the hope laced in his younger brother's tone; no matter how hard Sasuke tried to hide it, he simply wasn't as adept to masking emotions as Itachi was – although compared to other ninjas Sasuke was already far ahead of them. But Itachi was trained to hear the slightest inflections, and his younger brother did not fool him.

He decided to be truthful. A lie only spurned more lies, and he didn't want that kind of relationship with his most beloved sibling. It didn't hurt that Sasuke was his _only_ sibling, either.

"I don't know."

"Right. You'd let her play you?"

"No."

"Th-"

"Training, otouto," Itachi cut him off, disappearing in a swirl of leaves.

Sasuke put his hands together for a seal. There was enough fire in his belly to burn the training grounds down to the ground today.

* * *

><p>"I was burnt while training."<p>

"Mm," Sakura huffed as she healed his wounds. "Next time you request for me, Uchiha-san, please make sure that it is a life-threatening situation."

"I did not request you, Haruno-san. I apologize for the inconvenience."

"Then who did?"

"My mother. Evidently she has more faith in Sasuke's teammate than the other hospital personnels."

"I am slightly offended, Uchiha-san."

"Noted."

Sakura raised an eyebrow at Itachi's unapologetic reply, but decided to let it slide.

Regenerating the last few cells from his wound, Sakura retracted her hand and slid on her gloves.

"You're good to go, Uchiha-san."

"Thank you."

Silently, like the elite shinobi he was, Itachi glided out of the door and disappeared into the crowd, presumably to get away from the hospital as fast as humanely possible. The only way to get those shinobi in the hospital was by force, thus Itachi was probably dragged here by his mother, Sakura mused. That would explain the hostile vibes he'd been emanating; he wasn't there by will.

"Sakura!" Shizune was at the door. "Another team just came back in critical condition. Attacked by rogue nin. C'mon."

Throwing her musings to the back of her mind, Sakura followed swiftly after Shizune, demanding a pathway open with her decisive footsteps as she swept into the ER to perform nothing short of a miracle.

It took four grueling hours to rescue the team of genin. The jounin teacher new to the status had a hard time protecting the genin while fending off the rogue-nins, and only just managed to escape the enemy with his entire team intact. Sakura was so tired and chakra-depleted that she didn't even catch his name.

Sakura sank into the chair in her office, enervated. The sky outside was dark, and a glance at the clock told her that she was on the roll for another six hours before she could clock off. She groaned at the thought, too tired to even head to the cafeteria for a late dinner.

Then she sensed Tsunade's presence outside her door.

"Shishou."

The door opened and a blonde walked in.

"Sakura. I think I got it."

That perked the pink-haired woman up immediately.

"Are you serious?"

"I'm just more worried about the side-effects, though."

"I can try it, if you want. My chakra reserves are about zero now."

"But if you crash tomorrow-"

"Then I'll just sleep. I don't have a shift tomorrow, and you can give me a break from the training." Sakura winked playfully.

Tsunade rolled her eyes. After a pause for contemplation, Tsunade fished out two pills from her pouch.

Taking the yellow pills from her teacher, Sakura downed them quickly, followed by a glass of water. Almost immediately, Sakura could feel the energy coming back. Her chakra reserves were filling up, and her head felt clearer and lighter than seconds ago.

"Oh my gosh, shishou, where do you find the time to be a Hokage and an inventor at the same time? This is very effective!"

"Your energy's back. Good. Let me check for any symptoms," Tsunade said professionally, but Sakura caught the pride in her sensei's eyes. "Oh, and Sakura, excellent job yesterday."

"Have you figured out a way to deal with them yet?" Sakura asked as she felt Tsunade's chakra enter hers and prodded about her system, checking for anything abnormal.

Tsunade smiled, but didn't answer. "This is better than I'd hoped."

"That's great. I feel fantastic."

"Remember, the chakra is not yours. Once you finish using them up your body will temporarily have problems recognizing your own since the new chakra forced its way into your system. That's the reason for the crash. I'm still trying to find a way to fix that problem."

"Maybe I'll think of something when I crash," Sakura grinned.

Tsunade patted her on the back. "Maybe you will. Now stop slacking off."

"Shishou!" Sakura whined. "I only just got out of ER."

Suddenly they heard shouts outside in the hallway.

Sakura sighed. "Looks like it's time to go back in."

At three in the morning Sakura managed to stumble back into her abode, throw off her white coat and dump herself into bed where she promptly fell asleep. Her eyelids were so heavy that she could barely keep them open after the stunt she pulled in the ER that drained her of the new chakra that she'd ingested.

The next thing she knew she was shaking. Defensive mechanism kicking into instincts, her hand shot out to grab the intruder, applying pressure at the exact points to cut off the air supply.

Shocked green eyes bore into blue ones as Sakura quickly realized that she was strangling her blonde teammate.

"_God_ Naruto you scared the shit out of me!"

Sakura quickly let him go, Naruto nursing his neck where bruises were already forming. Sweeping hair out of her face, she turned to the coughing blonde.

"What're you doing here?"

"You didn't even lock the door, Sakura." Sasuke answered from the doorway, while Naruto struggled to get his voice box working again.

Slapping a hand to her forehead, she looked apologetically at Naruto and placed her hands to his sensitive neck to begin healing. "I am so sorry, Naruto-kun. I was testing out a drug yesterday and I kinda crashed badly."

Her glowing chakra faded as Naruto regained his speaking ability. He smiled weakly, mentally making a point to heed Sasuke's advice the next time he decided to approach Sakura while she was deep asleep. Sakura was usually very attuned to her surroundings, even when asleep, thus both he and Sasuke were worried when they entered her apartment with absolutely no response from the kunoichi at all.

"Anyway," Naruto began enthusiastically, as if he hadn't been choking a few seconds ago, "Let's go get some ramen!"

"What time is it?"

"Six o'clock," replied Sasuke.

"In the evening?"

"Hn."

"Alright. But I gotta go at eight, I'm meeting Ino for drinks."

"Why do you guys like drinking so much?" Naruto whined as Sakura usher him out of the room.

"So that I don't go crazy," Sakura replied before slamming the door in his face.

After an uneventful dinner – or as uneventful as you could get with Naruto – Sakura headed over to one of the most popular pubs in town. She'd thought that Sasuke had shot her some weird looks over dinner, but decided that if he was PMS-ing it was none of her business. She really needed to unwind with alcohol.

Ino was sitting with Genma and Shisui when Sakura entered _Rose_.

"Hey you three."

"Where's the skirt I gave you?" Ino asked, narrowing her eyes at the pink-haired kunoichi.

"Sorry, I prefer something that doesn't expose my underwear. Exhibitionism is really not my thing," Sakura smirked as their male companions snorted and Ino huffed.

"You can't get a decent lay like that, girl."

"I'm not looking."

"Speaking of getting laid," Shisui interrupted, "you'd never guess what the famous brothers were fighting about yesterday."

Anything regarding Sakura's smoking hot Uchiha teammate piqued Ino's interest. "Really? What?"

"They fought over a girl," Shisui boomed, clinking his glass with Genma's. "Itachi actually _let_ Sasuke hit him with Katon no jutsu."

"Who?" Ino demanded, blue eyes widening in both wonder and horror.

Shisui shrugged. "Mikoto-okasan just told me it was a woman, but only those two know who. And you know Itachi – when his lips are sealed, they are _fucking_ sealed. Can't get a single hint from the guy."

Genma grinned. "You ladies got any guesses?"

Ino narrowed her eyes in thought while Sakura shrugged nonchalantly. "No idea."

"Oh, c'mon. Ladies gossip among yourselves. Let us in on the joke so that we can poke fun at that stoic ANBU captain."

"Is it kunoichi?" Ino asked.

"Dunno," Shisui replied, "like I said, I can't get anything out of my cousins. Sasuke's not responding to my usual taunts either." Turning to Sakura, "Hey, aren't you his teammate or something? Maybe you can get it out of him."

"It'll all come out eventually," Sakura said with finality, signaling the end of the discussion.

"But that's no fun. The whole point of being the gossip mill is to be _ahead_ of it," Ino snapped, mood slightly deflated at the thought of Sasuke fighting for a woman that wasn't her.

Although Sakura grew out of her crush ages ago – it also helped that they'd slept together and figured they weren't right for each other – Ino still held certain fantasies about the dark-haired man. Not that she was _attached_ to Sasuke in any way, but Ino simply preferred to relive the old days of her crush.

They went on to chat about random things in their lives, and since it was Genma and Shisui, free and easygoing despite their dark lives in ANBU, conversation flowed easily and the four of them had a good time. Sakura was having so much fun just relaxing and talking to people whom she didn't have to lower her guard with, she realized a little too late that she was slightly inebriated. It wasn't anything that would prevent her from getting home safely, but it did allow her raw emotions to seep through more than usual.

At eleven, Sakura decided that she needed to sleep if she didn't want to get plummeted by her shishou the next day. No matter how long she trained with Tsunade, Sakura just couldn't seem to master her shishou's ability to have a clear mind when drunk. Sakura simply didn't have that talent.

After bidding goodbye to her comrades who were not interested in heading home yet, Sakura left _Rose_ and decided that it was a warm night that dictated a pleasant walk back home instead of a teleportation jutsu. She needed to clear her mind a bit, anyway.

Then a pair of strong, heavy arms wrapped around her waist.

* * *

><p><strong>Read and review!<strong>

**xoxo, Lady Aren**


	3. Chapter 3

**I enjoyed your reviews, and the guessing game you guys had going on with who was the one who grabbed Sakura! And I have to agree with EmoSakura95 that it would be rather cliche if it were Itachi. Anyway, based on Itachi's character, he would never be the type to do it.**

**Hope you guys enjoy the update! R&R(:**

* * *

><p>"Pretty girly, ya lookin' lonely…" an alcohol-laden breath whispered next to her ear. Unfamiliar hands moved up her body heading straight for her breasts.<p>

The stench of sweat and beer _reeked_ from the man's pores, and Sakura could feel her dinner contents attempting to make its way up her throat. Add that to her inebriated state, Sakura was in no mood to play nice.

Gathering more chakra than necessary, she slammed her elbow into the drunken man's ribs, breaking three of them without mercy. The man howled in pain, but the deserted streets didn't respond to his agonic plea.

"Fuck you, bitch, I was all nice and ready to enterta-"

The man didn't get to finish his sentence as Sakura delivered another punch to his jaw, blood spurting from his nose as he was sent flying to the pavement. The man spit out blood, eyes red and furious.

"Ya think you can hit me, I just let y-"

WHAM.

Sakura kicked him in the stomach. She was about to repeat the motion this time with a chakra-laden foot when, for the second time that night, strong arms wrapped around her and forced her backwards into a warm body. Sakura recognized the smell of the man immediately. He'd left a deep impression after all.

"Pick on someone your own size, Haruno-san."

"I'm drunk, Itachi, I don't care. He fucking groped me."

"And if you weren't inebriated it wouldn't have happened."

"You're saying this is _my_ fault?" Sakura narrowed her hazy green eyes, glaring at the intruder to her fight.

"No. Stop being irrational, Sakura."

"Hmmph," Sakura replied, but stopped resisting against his hold.

"Heal him."

"Fine," Sakura pouted, much like child who was caught lying.

Kneeling to the man was lying unconscious on the floor, Sakura placed her hand over the places she had dislocated and fixed his ribs, finally sealing the wounds and stopping the bleeding.

Standing up and dusting her knees, she turned to face the stoic man, who'd kept his eyes trained on her every move.

"Happy, Itachi-_taichou_?"

"Not at all, Sakura-san."

"Ugh, thank you, Itachi."

Sakura lifted her hand as a symbol of goodbye and went on the path for home. And she stayed quiet as Itachi silently hovered behind her until she reached her apartment.

Making an impulsive decision Sakura didn't know if she'd regret – but he was so damn delicious, and his presence there just brought back all the things they'd done in the hotel room – Sakura turned and sought out the glinting dark eyes that were partly illuminated by the yellow lights in the hallway.

"Would you come in?"

"I would."

"Then come."

* * *

><p>Sakura idly outlined the lights on the ceiling, casually making a mental note to change one of her blown bulbs soon. They were lying apart from each other on tousled sheets; Sakura waiting for her hammering heart to subside after their activity.<p>

"Why did you choose to live alone?"

It wasn't like Itachi to pry into her private life, but Sakura didn't see the harm in sharing. "If I stay at home, my parents will want to stay up and wait for me to come home, but I don't work office hours, so they worry. They'll know when I have missions, when I come home late from a shift at the hospital, and they'll just keep worrying. This way, at least they don't worry so much since they can't keep track of me. And I get to have mind-blowing sex without my dad getting nightmares."

"Hn. Do you always sleep with your colleagues?"

"No," Sakura said playfully, pinching his arm. "You were just too good to pass up."

"Ah."

There was a long period of silence before Itachi initiated conversation for a second time. Sakura was beginning to worry that the screwing had screwed his mind as well.

"This doesn't seem like the first time you've done this."

"Done what?"

"Have sexual relations with people you don't know."

"Well, yeah, it isn't."

"I'm not talking about seduction missions."

"Neither am I, Itachi."

"Hn."

Sakura felt that she'd had enough post-sex bonding. "Want some cereal?"

"Not unless absolutely necessary."

"Suit yourself."

Sakura climbed out of bed bare naked, grabbed an oversized shirt to pull over her head and made her way to the kitchen. She'd just finished programming some coffee when Itachi strolled into the kitchen, wearing only his jeans, which were unbuttoned, although zipped.

"Coffee or milk?"

"Coffee with milk."

"Greedy man."

"Hn."

She handed him a cup of steaming coffee before scooping some cereal into her mouth. The milk had softened them a bit, but the crunch was still there, so Sakura chewed on it happily.

"I have to leave." He'd finished his coffee.

"Don't forget your shirt," she reminded as he disappeared into her bedroom.

"Hn."

In a matter of minutes, Sakura felt Itachi's chakra vanish from her apartment. And then scooped another mouthful of cereal.

And she waited. She waited for the guilt to sink in, for the regret to wash over, for the embarrassment to seep in. She rarely brought home one-night stands to her own bed – she had her presidential suite for those – though she supposed Itachi was a two-night stand. But did that give him the privilege to sleep in _her_ bed?

And so she waited.

But it never came. Sakura just couldn't find it in herself to feel guilty. Not for the fantastic sex, the responsiveness, the invasion of privacy. She alluded it to the fact that Itachi simply didn't come across as overbearing, and that in turn lessened a lot of invisible pressure that other men couldn't hide.

That was that, Sakura supposed. She really didn't want to spend any more time pondering an empty question.

In a distance, a hawk called at a particular frequency that Sakura's trained ears picked up immediately.

Washing and drying the dishes, Sakura went into her room for a change of wardrobe.

It was time to go.

* * *

><p>Tsunade had called for an ANBU meeting, and ever since Sakura had been promoted to head medic for ANBU, her presence at any and all meetings regarding ANBU were required.<p>

The meeting was for in preparation of the upcoming ANBU examinations, as new recruits were subjected to training outside of Konoha. There weren't a lot of recruits, but that's where each newbie would be given specialized attention and training in their weakest areas. Sakura remembered that she came out of hers traumatized.

"All of you will be in the same base, but remember which section you are in charge of. Ibiki, Kakashi, Shikamaru will be in Section A, and Inoichi, Itachi and Sakura will be in Section B. Three of you from each section will rotate in keeping contact with me daily. Questions."

All ANBU elites shook their heads.

"Dismissed."

Five personalities disappeared from the room at once, but Sakura stayed.

"The contract with Mist has to be signed soon, Hokage-sama," Sakura reminded diligently. Having remained her shishou's assistant despite her recruitment into ANBU as well as her role as diplomatic relations for the hospital, Sakura was constantly involved in the affairs of the state.

"Yeah, yeah," Tsunade waved her hand carelessly, slumping onto the desk. "Are you prepared for the ANBU exams?"

"Almost. Inoichi-san has surprisingly creative ideas about how to give them the most unforgettable experience in their lives."

The Fifth smirked. "He's been hanging out with Ibiki for too long." Then, abruptly changing the subject, "You do know that both Naruto and Sasuke are in your section, right?"

Emerald eyes shone in amusement. "Yes, Hokage-sama."

"Give it to them good. And make sure Naruto goes back and whines to Jiraya."

Sakura burst out in peals of laughter while Tsunade smiled knowingly. After all, no one expected the perceived weakling female of Team 7 to have made ANBU before the males could. Tsunade had no qualms admitting that she was damn proud of her handiwork.

"Anyway, other than that, I'm looking for a Co-Head medic for the hospital. Shizune is overworked. And you are out of the question."

Sakura contemplated for a minute. "I would recommend Yamanaka Ino, Tsunade-shishou."

"I can't afford her absence when she goes on missions for ANBU. And don't suggest the Inuzuka, either. They are both valuable assets to ANBU."

"Would you consider Ryuzuki Oyone, then?" Sakura suggested. He got along very well with the older woman, and had assisted her many a time in the hospital. He had also garnered strong respect amongst his subordinates as an efficient and fair medic-nin.

"That's a thought. I wonder how he would feel about it." Tsunade pursed her lips in thought.

"Perhaps you would like me to seek him out?"

"It's fine, I'll have Shizune talk to him about it."

"Of course."

"Now, let's go to Training Ground 3. I need to beat that stupid formal tone you have adopted out of you."

Sakura relaxed her stance, pouted.

"Shishou!"

However, whining never worked on her teacher. Sakura could bat her eyelashes and have men licking her boots, but when it came to the Fifth Hokage of Konohagakure, every soft power in her arsenal was futile. She had learnt that to fight her teacher she had to fight hard power with hard power.

Sakura had barely put on her gloves when Tsunade came straight at her face with a chakra-pumped fist. Reacting instinctively, Sakura dodged and swiped her feet in an attempt to throw Tsunade off balance. Tsunade seemed to sense her intentions immediately, and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"You were really planning to make _me_ into your puppet, _Sakura_?" Tsunade's voice reverberated throughout the forest. She sounded mildly annoyed.

After Chiyo's death, Tsunade had sent Sakura to Sand to train medic-nins and to hold the fort to show goodwill between the two villages. Sakura not only trained the Head Medic who was currently running the hospital, she had managed to get Kankuro to teach her some of his Puppet Techniques. Being the shinobi he was, he had of course refused to teach her all his secrets, but Sakura learned enough to be able to use them in battle. She'd devised her own technique; using the Puppet Technique to control her enemies instead of puppets. It worked a lot like Shikamaru's shadow technique, but Sakura felt that her advantage was that she didn't need to rely on Mother Nature to execute her ninjutsu.

Sakura laughed in response to Tsunade's irk. "No way I would dare do that, Tsunade-shishou. But you _were_ coming at me with a chakra-fist."

But it was then Sakura realized that she had fallen for Tsunade's trap. By dodging her fist, it gave Tsunade the split second opening she needed to stop her chakra flow. It didn't give her enough time to seal her chakra reserves completely, but it incapacitated Sakura enough such that she could only fight at half capacity.

_I really shouldn't have let my guard down._

She had to make do with what she had, and five hours later, Sakura laid on the dirty ground, having completely depleted her entire chakra supply. Or, whatever Tsunade had not managed to seal.

"You win this one, shishou," Sakura breathed, not even having the energy to pant.

"Your stamina has improved, Sakura." Tsunade appeared beside her, legs stretched out, facing the lowering sun, enjoying the slight breeze that passed through, bringing the smell of leaves along with it.

"Your genjutsu is horrible. I don't think I'll ever get used to the cruelty of it."

"That's because you know that it's real."

"Yeah."

The teacher and student remained silent as their perspiration evaporated slowly. The sun had already set when Tsunade's stomach decided that it was ready for food. "Let's go eat that ramen Naruto's so fond of."

"You just like their sake, shishou."

"They have reasonably good ramen."

Sakura expressed her silent agreement by getting on her feet. Together, they made their way to Ichiraku. Sakura could feel the lethargy creeping into her mind, but she shook her head to clear it. She'd feel better after the food.

Ordering two bowls of ramen and sake for Tsunade, Sakura sat down across the blonde woman in the booth. Sometimes, she still wondered how she'd managed to get the Fifth Hokage as her sensei. It was something that other shinobi could only dream of.

She smiled gratefully at Tsunade, and the older woman seemed to understand it. Leaning forward, Tsunade reached across the table and ruffled Sakura's wildly messy hair. It was a gesture of love and affection that drove Sakura's love and appreciation for her sensei. As a woman, no matter how skilled a kunoichi, her motherly instincts still shone through. And she loved her sensei all the more for that.

Shinobi were sometimes too uptight on emotions, and Sakura had always appreciative Tsunade's ability to balance emotions with power. She could command, but she could also nurture, something that not every shinobi were capable of, since highly-skilled ninjas often prided themselves as being inscrutable. It wasn't that they were emotionless; but they simply weren't willing to show them. But Sakura knew from experience that children simply _needed_ that show of love and affection. It gave them strength the way training and harsh punishments could not.

The food arrived, and both women muttered their thanks. By then Sakura was starving, so she dug in quickly.

As she chewed on her noodles, Tsunade brought up another topic. "So how was the pill?"

"I crashed."

"Damn."

"But I've got an idea of how to get around it. I'm not sure if it'll work though."

"What is it?"

"If I don't use up the 'new' chakra and give enough time to replenish my chakra reserves, I will reduce the chances of crashing, right?"

"Yes, but that is assuming that as you use up the last vestiges of the 'new' chakra, you are also at the same time channeling your own. But that requires a high level of control, or else your body may recognize your own chakra as the 'new' chakra, then it wouldn't work well with your body anymore. It is like how you can only take the pill when you have almost zero chakra left."

"Oh. Hmm, I'll keep working on it, then."

"Maybe you can try it on some of the ANBUs during the camp," Tsunade suggested, her eyebrows wriggling suggestively. "They'll never know what hit them. And if they figure out a way around it, it'll be even better. They _are_ our elites, after all."

Sakura giggled.

* * *

><p>"I was thinking of taking up bartendering," Sakura said absentmindedly, swirling the martini in her glass. Ino had run into them at Ichiraku, and had managed to persuade Sakura out for a drink, just them girls.<p>

"Are you _fucking_ nuts?" Ino shot back, taking another sip of her cold beer. "You're running _three_jobs and it's still not enough for you?"

"It'll be something like a hobby."

Her gorgeous blonde best friend snorted into her drink. "Yeah, sure, when are you gonna find the time for it?"

"I dunno. I'll find time here and there."

"And your teacher's just gonna be at your beck and call, right?"

"That cute bartender seemed to like me the other night."

"No man likes to be played like a lapdog, girl. Especially when he's civilian."

"Shinobi don't like being lapdogs either."

"Difference is shinobi know they're not being treated like lapdogs because they know the profession."

"Fine, I'll find a shinobi who knows the ropes."

"Good luck doing that, Sakura. Shinobi only have one job in their lives."

"I'd like to believe differently, Ino."

Brilliant blue eyes connected with hers. Ino's patience, annoyance and appreciation came through all at once. Her eyes softened, and she reached out a hand to pat Sakura's cheek affectionately.

"I know you do, Sakura-chan."

Usually, she would have been miffed at her best friend's mildly condescending gesture, but Sakura realized that after exhausting herself during training and finally settling down to have civilized conversation, she didn't have the energy to keep up her usual façade. Sakura was very clear that deep down, she very much wanted to be the idealist she was rather than the realist she portrayed. It was like wanting to believe Santa Claus existed even when you _knew_ that he didn't.

"I slept with a man."

"I always hope that you'd prefer to sleep with men rather than women during your recreational time, darling."

Sakura laughed.

Ino lowered her voice. "You ANBU captains have it easy. _We_ are the ones who work our asses off to prepare the base for you guys."

"I'm not a captain."

"Whatever, you're up ranking with the big boys."

"I went through what you did and I wasn't even in ANBU."

"One of the perks of being Tsunade's personal lapdog."

"More like a slave."

"You love it, you workaholic."

"Besides, I'm not going to get any sleep for the next two weeks."

"Liar. You have your own private base hidden. You can just sleep there for ten hours straight without getting ambushed."

"Who says the recruits won't find out about it? It'd be rather disappointing if they didn't. Besides, we won't have ten hours."

"Eight, then."

"Ino."

The blonde threw up her palms in defeat. "Your say, Sakura."

"You got passed over Head Medic in hospital because of your place in ANBU."

Ino waved it off. "I expected it. Tsunade would have been stupid to let me run both positions."

"You aren't disappointed?"

"I've always liked the action during missions more than tending to patients, anyway."

* * *

><p><strong>I know this chapter reads awfully like a filler chapter, but I can assure you that it isn't. I am trying to portray a different side to Sakura, how her character matured over time, and thus her relationships with others would gradually change as well. Here, we take a deeper look into Sakura's inner struggles (though what's been written for this chapter barely scratches the surface) and how Ino's role as a best friend and confidante in her life has developed.<strong>

**There are plenty of others stories out there written with sole focus on Sakura's relationship with Itachi, but I always believed that life didn't revolve around your romantic partner only.**

**Read and review, tell me whatchu think! All reviews are read and appreciated.**

**xoxo**

**Lady Aren**


	4. Chapter 4

**Back with Chapter 4!**

* * *

><p>Sakura yawned as she rolled out of bed. The sky was still dark, but Sakura knew that she was going to be late if she didn't hurry. The only person in ANBU who was expected – or allowed – to be late was Kakashi, but even then the seasoned ANBU knew that today was not the day to play a fool. ANBU had its procedures, and <em>no one <em>was an exception, although they were all exceptional.

Switching on the light as she entered the bathroom, Sakura turned on the tap to splash the sleep away. Her vision cleared and the blur of her face came into focus. She'd dye her hair black the day before, so that she wouldn't need to use a henge to hide her identity. It would rouse unwarranted suspicion. After all, which idiot wouldn't recognize the pink-haired apprentice of the Hokage?

Dressed in her ANBU gear with the mask firmly in place, Sakura locked her door, activated the traps and transported directly to the ANBU headquarters. Already in the meeting room were Tsunade, Ibiki, Itachi, and surprisingly, Kakashi. It was three minutes to the designated meeting time, and apparently Kakashi had deemed this event important enough to actually be _early_.

The mental bet she'd made with herself to arrive before Kakashi lost, Sakura pouted behind her mask, glad for the shield. Everyone in the room would have caught her expression; and they'd wonder about her reaction. She nodded her acknowledgement of her colleagues and the Hokage.

They didn't have to wait long, however. Shikamaru appeared almost exactly as the same time as Inoichi did within thirty seconds.

Tsunade nodded to Ibiki, and the man's face, if possible, became even grimmer. The scar on his face became more pronounced under the harsh fluorescent light, and Sakura literally saw his pupils thin into silts.

"You know the drill; remember to be on your guard at all times. This is the future ANBU after all. We expect nothing short of exceptional from them."

There was a murmur of agreement.

Ibiki turned his beady eyes on her. "Sakura, you'll take the first shift for maintaining the genjutsu, Itachi will come in later."

"Got it."

"Itachi?"

"Hn."

"Sakura and Itachi will head to be base first. The rest of you, round up your recruits. We will regroup in an hour."

All ANBU members formed seals faster than normal eyes could detect and disappeared, leaving no trace of their presence just a second ago.

Tsunade yawned and grinned wickedly. "Back to bed for me."

* * *

><p>"Black hair compliments you."<p>

Sakura smiled slightly as she drew the parameters of her genjutsu. Itachi followed her trace of chakra carefully.

"You can't even see my face."

"Hn." _But of course he knew exactly how she looked._

"Mm." Sakura became distracted from their conversation as she began to channel chakra into all the right places. She opened her eyes to find Itachi staring intensely at her through his mask, his Sharingan activated.

"Good?"

"Excellent."

Sakura sighed happily, not expecting praise from the master of genjutsu.

"The black hair isn't going to trick my brother, Sakura."

"What?"

"He recognizes your scent."

"You make me sound like a dog."

Itachi remained quiet as he watched Sakura play over different scenarios in her mind.

"The black hair will throw him off, no?"

"No."

Itachi was right, Sakura mused. It would probably confuse Sasuke for a millisecond before he put two and two together. Or maybe she was thinking too highly of herself. Would Sasuke believe she had enough in her to have become ANBU before he did?

"I'll mask it, then."

"How?" Itachi seemed genuinely interested.

"Just a couple of herbs here and there would do the trick. It's a bit like confusing the dog."

"Uchihas are not dogs."

"I wasn't insinuating they were."

"Hn."

"I'll go get the herbs," Sakura said, dusting her arms. She disappeared in a flash, leaving Itachi to hold the fort.

Itachi had really thought that she looked fantastic with black hair. The dark color of the hair set off the paleness of her skin perfectly, giving her an almost ethereal glow.

He barely had more than a few minutes to himself when Sakura came back, this time smelling like fresh leaves and jasmine. His nose crinkled. Leaves weren't his favorite smell. He tried for a deeper intake of breath, and realized that there was really no trace of her original scent left. She'd masked it completely.

"You're not using chakra."

"Of course not. I created a smell that my original scent can merge with, so that the combined smell will come off as natural. I'm not masking anything."

"Impressive."

"When you have Kakashi as your teacher, you learn how not to be tracked."

"We really aren't dogs."

Sakura smiled a smile that Itachi couldn't see, but he felt her mirth.

The joy immediately disappeared, however, when they sensed the approaching presence of their comrades as well as the new recruits.

Sakura dropped her voice a notch lower. "Show's starting."

The entry into ANBU was built upon genjutsu after genjutsu, and those who couldn't sense it were rejected immediately, although most of them would have no idea they'd been rejected. But even then, as they were down to their second last round, Sakura felt some of the candidates turned away. They couldn't detect her level of jutsu.

The rest, however, came into the base easily. Once they were all in, Sakura released the first level of the genjutsu. The ANBU recruits were crowded in the main square, standing at attention, their eyes focused on a single soul at the front.

Ibiki was standing tall with his arms crossed, his face grim, his eyes watching. And then, as if on cue, five figures appeared behind him, hidden in dark shadows. No one dared make a sound.

"This," Ibiki's voice reverberated dangerously through the sky that was just lightening, "will be the worst time of your lives. If you're not ready for this, leave immediately."

No one moved an inch.

"If you're in this for the glory, leave immediately or I will personally break you." _Both in the mind and the body. _Everyone knew which Konoha force the scarred man led. The silent threat hung menacingly in the air.

Nobody breathed.

"Then you will now split into four groups." Four ANBU personnels stepped forward. Each of them now faced a group of shinobi.

"Your task is to tie their hands behind their backs. That is all. Begin."

There was a flurry of motion as the recruits began attacking their superiors all at once. Sakura watched her attackers carefully, measuring their abilities as they tested out hers. Kunai came at her from all directions, and Sakura either dodged or deflected them all, sending her own kunai along with theirs back at her attackers. Water came out of nowhere in the middle of the forest, and Sakura could sense a strong gathering of chakra that was likely to become a hurricane to compliment the tsunami.

Sakura would have been drowned – if only she wasn't a clone.

From afar, Sakura watched in amusement as the recruits attempted to capture her using the water. She allowed her clone to remain still for them to tie her hands. Sakura felt the presence creeping behind her, and she waited until he was so close that he'd thought he'd outsmarted her.

Then, with a twist of her fingers, she stopped his movement with her puppet technique, his hands and legs no longer under his command.

"You found me," Sakura mused.

He struggled to regain control of his body, but Sakura kept her chakra threads firm. Then, she hurled him towards the group of shinobi that were tying her hands behind her clone's back, and dispelled her clone. The direction the shinobi was hurled from would have revealed her hiding position, and Sakura happily welcomed the attack, finally getting some action.

Three shinobi came at her with taijutsu, and Sakura easily flicked them away, using the chakra threads her clone had fixed on them earlier when they were tying her hands. None of them knew what was happening. No one except Tsunade and Kankuro knew about her puppet technique, after all. Sakura then proceeded to turn them on each other, as distraction as she casted another layer of genjutsu on their senses.

She then released her threads, and waited for them to realize that they were no longer fighting each other under her control. Sakura watched as they attacked each other now, fully of their own accord. Suddenly, the man with the light brown hair put his hands together and muttered, "_Kai._"

Sakura smirked as he turned to see her sitting there, watching the others fight with thin air.

"Are you ready to tie my hands up?"

Sakura allowed him to tap his comrades and dispel the genjutsu.

Again, three taijutsu wielders lunged for her. She kept an eye on the other three who were probably planning for some sort of ambush. She deflected the punches and the kicks, incapacitating them little by little, so that it went by unnoticed by the shinobi.

"Stop."

The single word uttered by the interrogator halted all movement in the main square. The four ANBU members returned to their original positions behind Ibiki, falling in line with Inoichi, who had stayed to survey the performance of the recruits with Ibiki. The sun had already risen, and judging from the position of the sun, they'd been fighting for only about an hour.

No one had managed to secure their target's hands behind their backs. Sakura smirked at the memory of _her_ recruit test.

"_Your task is to tie their hands behind their backs. Begin."_

_Sakura grabbed the two persons nearest to her and called out to the rest. "Guys, I've got an idea."_

"_What?" the ninja to her right asked gruffly, apparently annoyed that he had been halted in his attack. The woman had a death grip that her pink hair belied._

"_One of us stays while the rest of us help the other group beside us to secure their target first, then we get them to help secure ours. We can't possibly match up to an ANBU captain. Not at such a small number. But if we surprise them we just might be able to overcome him."_

"_Why would we want to help the other group?"_

"_We don't have time to argue here. One second, yes or no."_

"_Yes."_

"_Yes."_

"_No."_

"_Yes."_

"_Outvoted. The 'no' you can go fight Kakashi on your own. Distract him," Sakura commanded._

"_Fuck," the unknown man muttered as five of his supposed group mates disappeared for a surprise attack on the other group. How the fuck was he supposed to fight the Copy-ninja alone?_

_He didn't have time to think as he turned around and got caught immediately in Kakashi's famous Sharingan. "Double fuck."_

_Elsewhere, Sakura leapt onto the target from behind, and stabbed a kunai straight through his neck. She ended up straddling a log of wood, but it didn't matter, at least the other recruits were out of the genjutsu._

"_Hanabi?" Sakura asked._

"_I can't see him anywhere."_

"_Shit," Sakura muttered, gathering chakra to her fist. "I thought only Kakashi did this kind of trick."_

_She plunged her fist into the ground, breaking the entire structure, disrupting the others fighting as well in the process. Spotting her target, Sakura flew towards him. However, she noticed two other shinobi who were speeding towards him as well, so she slowed down, and allowed the other two shinobi to thoroughly distract the ANBU. She took the short reprieve to check her own chakra for any sign that she'd been accidentally caught in a genjutsu. So far, she was safe._

_Sakura stared in mild surprise as the ANBU member allowed for his hands to be tied up. He caught her bewilderment and sent a nod her way. _

"_Go fight that Kakashi, I just wanna see how he'd do it with double the recruits." He sounded like he was having fun._

_Sakura checked herself again for any sign of genjutsu. There wasn't. She reached towards the captured man and felt his chakra. There wasn't anything off. Sakura could only suppose that he had some sort of grudge or rivalry against her former sensei._

_Sakura looked at the group of surrounding nonplussed ninjas. "Let's go. Kakashi's gonna be hell."_

_Returning to the man who had disagreed with them earlier Sakura saw that he was simply standing – no kneeling – in front of Kakashi, his face contorted in fear and disgust, his eyes wide and terrified. The masked Copy-nin looked straight at Sakura._

"_Oh, you're back." Sakura could almost see the crinkle his eye would make._

_Kakashi allowed one of the shinobi to tap the captured man, breaking him from the Sharingan._

"_That's a clone," Hanabi informed helpfully. "He's in that tree." The young Hyuuga pointed towards a tree a distance off._

_No sooner had she said that when thousands of kunai flew out from the tree at incredible speed. Sakura just managed to dodge them all; but some of them were hit straight in the arm or leg. It was meant to incapacitate their numbers._

_The medic in her flared to life as she quickly began healing those directly around her, even as more kunai shot out from the trees at breakneck speed. Two of the unhurt took the initiative and flew towards the tree to attack the Copy-nin, while Sakura kept healing the injured._

_Sakura felt a presence gaining speed towards her, and immediately turned to deflect the attack. It was Kakashi. Running towards her with a rasengan. Given, it was the miniature version as compared to Naruto's but his malicious intent was evident. He really means to kill me, Sakura panicked a split second before gathering her own chakra to match his mini rasengan._

_Sakura breathed a sigh of relief as two other shinobi came to her aid, and she charged towards Kakashi with more confidence than when she'd first seen the rasengan._

"_Stop."_

"You will now close your eyes and listen to the instructions."

The four ANBU elites who had been fighting began their genjutsu, informing those who had failed _their _test that they were to leave immediately. The rejects formed their seals and transported out. Nobody knew about anyone else's outcome.

The number of recruits now was significantly lesser.

Shikamaru passed two, Itachi one, Sakura one, and Kakashi none, as usual. Kakashi rarely ever passed anyone. Sakura took pride in the fact that _he_ had passed her.

There were officially only four ANBU recruits. After training, they would be personally filtered by Tsunade again.

Sakura saw that Itachi hadn't passed Naruto. But Shikamaru had passed Sasuke.

Sakura let out an inaudible sigh. She wasn't exactly looking forward to revealing herself to Sasuke.

For the next five hours, the four new recruits were stuck with Shikamaru on shogi. Sakura supposed four brains – of ANBU level no less – gave Shikamaru's lone brain a run for its money. Meanwhile, Sakura concentrated on controlling her chakra levels. She had had a little too much fun playing with them today, and she'd accidentally let her chakra levels fall below her expected range. She reprimanded herself harshly for the irresponsible act.

Sakura had molded herself with the genjutsu, to avoid the other ANBU members who might decide to drop by and ask if she needed help with low chakra. She _didn't_. It wasn't that they couldn't detect her, but if her intent was to not be found, they'd leave her alone. It was basic courtesy.

Sakura had just about upped her levels when Itachi appeared in front of her. Nothing escaped his Sharingan.

"It is my shift."

Sakura scooted to her left in response, patting the flat grass next to her. Itachi accepted her invitation and descended to the ground with all the grace of a cat. Sometimes, Sakura couldn't help but think that he was simply just a beautiful creature. Graceful, poised and powerful.

Itachi felt the dark-haired woman beside him relax once the transfer was complete and he now bore all the weight of genjutsu on his shoulders.

"Why didn't you pass Naruto?" Sakura asked conversationally.

"He thinks one-dimensionally."

"It's a character flaw. It's hard to change."

"Then he'll never see ANBU."

Sakura sighed quietly behind her mask.

"You wish him to make ANBU."

Sakura pondered Itachi's statement/question. The man never asked anything outright; he just stated his question like a sentence. Finally Sakura decided on her true feelings.

"I do not have a preference for Naruto. He is what he is."

"Hn."

"Well," Sakura said, getting up from her comfortable position on the grass. "I'd better get going. Gotta prepare their surprise for them."

Itachi gave a nod of acknowledgement, and Sakura turned to make her way to the tent that held the shogi players.

Silently, Sakura entered the tent and stood by the side as she watched Shikamaru decide his next move. Shikamaru was winning, but only marginally so. He was going to win, nevertheless, so Sakura cleared her throat indiscreetly.

Suddenly, four pairs of curious eyes were on her. "Hurry up and finish the game, please. There are plenty to do before the day is out."

"We've lost, anyway," Sasuke spoke, his dark eyes fixed on her, as if trying to place her familiar voice. With her black hair and masked scent Sakura didn't think Sasuke could recognize her even if he'd found her voice familiar.

Others murmured in agreement at Sasuke's declaration.

"Then follow me." Turning on her heels, Sakura led the four recruits out of the tent, leaving Shikamaru to continue staring at the shogi bored.

"Heh," the ANBU captain smirked. They could have won if they'd just tried to think of it from a different angle. Shikamaru supposed it was a good thing that Sakura stepped in, then. No need to let the newbies think they were better than their seniors even before they joined the organization.

Out in the main square, Sakura had them lay their weapons on the ground. She swept them up in a black bag and tied it up tightly. She had them lined a straight row, and walked down behind them, tapping each of them on the back of their necks before having them face each other, one on one.

"There are no rules. You have one and a half hour to make your opponent unconscious. Please begin."

And Sakura stood, guarding the bag of weapons beside her as she watched various forms of ninjutsu released on the field. They would realize in a matter of seconds that they only had a twelfth of their chakra, and they had to use it wisely or else they'd simply drop into unconsciousness from the lack of chakra.

Sakura smiled. Rock Lee would have excelled at this challenge. It was simply unfortunate that as a ninja who never mastered other forms of shinobi jutsu, he would probably never be shortlisted to be in ANBU.

Despite having cut off eleven-twelfth of their chakra supply, Sakura was pleasantly surprised that the fights were still ongoing after one hour. Any normal ninja, whether jounin status or not, would have dropped off after half an hour of combat.

Sakura focused on her former lover as he attacked, still waiting for the perfect chance to cast his genjutsu to render his opponent unconscious. The Uchiha Clan was famous for its Sharingan wielders, and Sasuke opponent was doing his best to avoid giving him an opening. Weakness from exhaustion finally took over, and the brown-haired man finally gave Sasuke the opening he needed to cast his genjutsu. He promptly fell to the ground, unconscious.

On the other side, the two shinobi were still fighting. Sakura came forth, and Sasuke turned with his back straight, his eyes alert, albeit a little fatigued. The question formed in his eyes.

"Fight me," Sakura commanded. Not giving him time to react, Sakura pushed off the ground and immediately landed a blow to Sasuke's torso, forcing him to fly backwards a few meters before he regained balance and broke his fall.

He didn't get enough time though, because the ANBU's kick came at him again. He only just managed to block it, and squeezed in a punch of his own, though to no avail. She avoided his attack easily. He had been fighting all morning, playing shogi in the afternoon, and now he was forced to fight without weapons _and_ limited amounts of chakra. He didn't expect to be able to go up against a well-rested ANBU captain.

With his low amounts of chakra, he couldn't summon another genjutsu. He could only fight with his taijutsu and ninjutsu that required little chakra. He was definitely going to lose this fight badly. He dimly realized that the fight on the other side had ended. He didn't have time to react before the ANBU rounded up on him and blocked his chakra supply completely, forcing him to drop into unconsciousness.

Sakura watched as Sasuke's eyes fluttered close. Then she turned to face the last one standing. She smirked, shooting a side-way glance at Sasuke.

"Your turn."

Sakura admitted that the man put up a good fight, although not better than Sasuke. It didn't matter, she thought as she left the four recruits unconscious on the ground as they baked under the afternoon sun. They were bound to get sunburned and would hurt like hell later, but that would only fuel what Ibiki and Inoichi had in store for them. She shuddered to think of what they had to go through.

"Ibiki-taichou, Inoichi-san," Sakura greeted as she entered the mass, where the two interrogators were having tea.

"That was faster than expected," Inoichi commented, sipping his tea.

"They are all currently unconscious, and I've permanently blocked their chakra supply for the next eight hours."

"Thank you, Sakura-san," Ibiki said politely. "You may retire for the day."

Sakura nodded. She peeked into the shogi tent and found Shikamaru and Kakashi deep in a game. She sighed inaudibly as she turned away and retired to the private base they had hidden somewhere else.

She halted as she entered.

"Itachi?"

* * *

><p><strong>Do review and let me know what you think!<strong>

**xoxo,  
>Lady Aren <strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**_From the previous chapter..._**

_Sakura nodded. She peeked into the shogi tent and found Shikamaru and Kakashi deep in a game. She sighed inaudibly as she turned away and retired to the private base they had hidden somewhere else._

_She halted as she entered._

_"Itachi?"_

* * *

><p>"Sakura."<p>

Said woman paused for a while before she began.

"This is quite a distance to maintain the genjutsu."

"They are currently unconscious."

"What if one of them wakes up?"

"Not likely, since you were the one that knocked them out."

_Nice to know you have such faith in me_, Sakura thought sarcastically. Outwardly, she nodded politely. They should move on to another subject, then. If the genjutsu was found out it would be on him, not her. He could risk it all he liked.

"Have you had dinner?"

"No."

Sakura smirked. "We've got cereal."

"Not unless necessary."

She huffed at his familiar response. "Let's have sushi, then."

"Hn."

Sakura thought he sounded agreeable – whatever his monosyllabic answer meant – so she brought out the food and placed them on the table, handing a pair of chopsticks to Itachi. Then she took out two saucers with wasabi and soy sauce, and placed one in front of the man sitting across from her.

"Ittadakimasu," they murmured together.

They ate in amiable silence as Sakura scrambled for a suitable conversation starter.

"How long have you been in ANBU?" _Work seems like a suitable topic. No matter that it was the Black Ops of Konoha._

"Eleven years."

"Damn, you stuck with this job for so long?"

"Hn."

"Do you like it?"

Itachi stared at her so intensely at the question that she felt as though he was belittling her for her childish tendencies. Every adult knew that life didn't always go according to what you _liked_.

"It is what I do."

Sakura quirked an eyebrow. "So you're doing it for somebody else, then."

Itachi didn't reply as he swiftly delivered another sushi to his mouth and chewed on it. Sakura sighed. He wasn't going to answer her.

"Sakura."

"Hm?"

"Eat your sushi."

"Oh, right."

They completed the rest of the dinner in relative silence.

Standing side by side, Sakura washed the utensils and plates they'd used while Itachi dried and replaced them in the cupboard. Having always done the housework around the house, Sakura moved faster and more naturally than he did, so when she was done, she leaned against the counter and watched him.

For once, his movements were unsure, the dry cloth in his hand clumsily wiping the plate. He handled the plate as if it would drop anytime, his hands obviously in unfamiliar territory. If it were a kunai he was wiping, Sakura was sure that he could have done so with his eyes closed. But right then, Itachi had his eyes focused on the plate, watching it carefully as if it would suddenly sprout wings and fly out of his hands.

Finally the last of the plates were placed in the cupboard, and Itachi gently closed it, turning to Sakura who'd been watching him with unconcealed mirth.

Itachi watched with pleasure as the laughter in Sakura's eyes faded away when he turned his gaze on her. The change of mood was abrupt, but then again, both of them had known what was coming the moment Sakura came through the door and found Itachi lounging in the couch.

Neither hesitated to close the distance between them, and their lips met in a heated frenzy that each didn't expect the other to have. His hands slid easily around her petite waist as her fingers went combing through his hair. Being a good head shorter than Itachi, Sakura was completely enclosed by the man, her body molding softly against his as she sank in for a deeper kiss.

Itachi tilted her chin up as he slanted his mouth over hers, their tongues in their usual battle of dominance and entry. Itachi ran his teeth along the plump bottom of her lips before tearing himself away, partly to breathe, partly to warn Sakura of the approaching company.

"Kakashi and Shikamaru have left the base," he breathed, and Sakura took pride in the fact that she wasn't the only one having trouble respiring.

"I guess hunger trumps shogi," Sakura muttered tonelessly.

Itachi smirked wryly. Sakura recognized the farewell in his eyes, so she patted him awkwardly on the arm, wanting him to stay but needing him to leave. "Best not to let the others know you're slacking off."

"I was doing no such thing," were his last words before disappearing with a flick. Sakura swore he was on par with Shisui with that technique, although the title of Body Flicker was indisputably still his cousin's.

Sakura released a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding and set out to straighten herself so that she didn't look as if she'd been doing anything remotely suspicious. ANBU members were known for their immaculate observation skills, after all.

Kakashi and Shikamaru arrived only minutes later, looking surprisingly refreshed after a whole evening (and afternoon, for the Nara genius) of shogi.

Kakashi took one look at Sakura and actually _pouted_. Not that Sakura could see his entire face or anything, but after six years of training with the man one learned to read the limited portion of the face one could see; namely his eye. "You've already had dinner."

"There's more sushi in the fridge," Sakura replied, rolling her eyes. Her lazy ass of a teacher had probably hoped she would dine with them, and then clean up _for_ them afterwards. Hah. _No such luck, sensei_. No male shinobi ever enjoyed the act of cleaning up and the two geniuses before her were no exception. In fact, Sakura thought it was absolutely _unfair_ that kunoichi were expected to fight _and_ cook _and_ clean whereas shinobi got off just fighting. The XY chromosomes had it a whole lot easier.

Shikamaru grumbled something that sounded suspiciously like 'troublesome', and dragged his feet over to the fridge to select his dinner. Kakashi followed suit.

Meanwhile Sakura immersed herself into the thick medical book that she'd brought along for this trip. It was a book of everything, from poisons to chakra-enhancements, and it was a book that no one but a medically trained personnel could comprehend. The usage of medical terms were so extensive that she was sure if Kakashi or Shikamaru were to read it, they wouldn't be able to understand what they'd just read. Sakura knew that Tsunade got many inspirations for the creation of new jutsu from this book, and she was just as determined to attempt to create a few of her own. Tsunade's jutsu fit her needs perfectly, but it didn't fit just as well for Sakura. She needed a few alterations here and there or a completely new jutsu to fit her own limitations and needs.

It was already well into the night when Sakura returned to reality. Kakashi was idly watching some news on the television and Shikamaru had disappeared – probably to do some moon-gazing. It was a clear night; there were no clouds.

"Kakashi?"

"Yes, Sakura?"

"Do you want to become a jounin teacher again?"

"Thinking of going back to it, Sakura?" Kakashi asked, the smirk evident in his voice.

"I can't decide."

"Then stick to what you have until you've made a decision."

"Why did you come back to ANBU? Did we upset you terribly to turn you off teaching or something?"

"No, not really. I just felt that it was time."

"I never knew you were so driven by your emotions, sensei."

Kakashi outwardly cringed at the use of his old title. "Human beings are ultimately driven by emotions, Sakura. Even the most skilled shinobi," his voice took on his old lecture-ish tone. "We just learn to not let it overrule us."

"Hm. So who won the shogi match?" Sakura abruptly changed the subject.

Kakashi's eye crinkled at her question. "Who do you think?"

Sakura pretended to brood on his rhetorical question.

"Such faith you have in me, Sakura-chan."

"I gotta have more faith in my comrades too, you know. Rookie Nine has to stand for _something_."

Kakashi chuckled.

"Your mask is useless," Sakura said, "people recognize you anyway."

"When you get into the bingo book you'd stop dying your hair too, Sakura."

Sakura huffed. "_If_. Imagine a _medic-nin_ being inside a bingo book. It just doesn't sound right."

"Tsunade-sama's in the bingo book."

"But Tsunade-shishou's everything _before_ being a medic-nin."

"So are you, Sakura."

"Hn."

"I didn't realize you were an Uchiha."

Sakura laughed. It was kind of hard to believe that Kakashi actually held the same conception as the rest of the people that Uchihas' famous monosyllabic reply was "hn".

"Did you train Sasuke-kun for this exam?"

"No. I believe his father trained him for this one."

"Guess the Uchiha wants both sons in the Black Ops, huh."

"I didn't realize you dabbled in politics, Sakura."

Sakura smirked. "It's hard being the Godaime's apprentice when you don't do politics."

"True."

"Are you ever getting married?"

That was when Kakashi fixed a serious eye on her. "And this is where the conversation thread stops." He whipped out the ever familiar orange smut book.

"But it hasn't even started!" Sakura whined. "Besides, I've got a point behind the question. I mean, don't you need to pass down your awesome genes before something – _ahem_ – happens?"

"How do you know I don't secretly have five children, Sakura?"

"I'm not joking!"

"Are you planning to get married?"

"I don't know."

"I'm not your teacher anymore, Sakura. I can't give you answers the way you want me to."

"I don't want answers, _Kakashi_. I just want to know."

"Then use your acquired skills to find out."

"Apparently my charm doesn't work on you."

"It most certainly does, Sakura," Kakashi smiled at her sense of defeat. "Half the time I listen to you."

"That's just _half_ the time, Kakashi."

"More than enough, I think."

"Now I feel like you're just humoring me."

"I am."

Feeling childish, Sakura stuck out her tongue at him. Well, there went any hope to getting anything out of her ex-sensei. Sakura wondered if all the genius shinobi weren't attached because of their genius or something else. It seemed that exceptional IQ may have overruled any and all emotions for them.

But it wasn't the case for Shikamaru, Sakura mused. The man, after all, had married the first sibling of Sand. How Shikamaru ever convinced Temari to marry him was a mystery that no one could solve. They just suddenly announced that they were to be wed, and that their close friends and comrades were invited. Even Ino, the gossip queen of Konoha and daughter of the second-in-command of Konoha Torture and Interrogation Force, couldn't get a peep out of the couple.

_Forget it_, Sakura sighed internally. It wasn't like she was weighing whatever chance she had with Itachi anyway. True, his actions had been confusing and random, and he had been her two-night stand, but that was probably that. Maybe _he_ didn't know what he was doing either. _If that was the case_, Sakura decided, _then I won't waste my time thinking about it anymore_.

She smirked. She'd just _do_.

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><p>Sakura awoke at four in the morning. Groggily, she made the way to the bathroom and splashed freezing cold water on her face in an attempt to clear her foggy mind. Being a woman had its privileges, since she did not have to share her bathroom with any of the other males. Shikamaru and Kakashi, however, had to wake up earlier than she did if they wanted a turn in the bathroom.<p>

She could hear the two of them conversing in low voices in the kitchen, so after ensuring that she looked presentable, she grabbed her mask off the table top and strolled into the kitchen.

She stopped short at the sight before her. "You're eating dango. At _four_ in the morning."

Kakashi smiled with his lone eye. "Want some?"

"No way. I'm having cereal."

Kakashi shrugged, getting up. "Ibiki and Inoichi are probably done with them by now."

The two ANBU members from Rookie Nine shuddered as Kakashi disappeared with his teleportation jutsu.

Munching on her favorite cereal, Sakura turned to Shikamaru, who was still chewing on a dango leisurely. "So…what are you gonna do today?"

"Watch the clouds."

Sakura rolled her eyes. She should have totally expected that. "How's Temari doing?"

Shikamaru sighed. "Still pregnant."

"Just about five months more, Shikamaru-kun."

"She was being completely irrational about the ANBU exam. As if I had the power to change the dates so that I could become her personal slave 24/7."

"You _are_ one of the captains, Shikamaru-kun. You do have a certain amount of influence."

"Che, troublesome."

Sakura grinned. "You just couldn't stand being so near your wife without getting some, huh."

"Troublesome."

"Yeah, yeah," Sakura droned, getting up and putting the bowl in the sink. "I'm going to take over Itachi. Do wash up the bowls, Shikamaru-kun."

Without giving the lazy shinobi a chance to reply, Sakura left their private base. Itachi was sitting cross-legged on a rock, his eyes closed in meditation.

"Did you have a good rest, Sakura?" Itachi asked, his eyes still closed.

"Enough to pull a twenty-four hour shift while you finish them up after Kakashi has his way with them." Smiling green eyes met obsidian ones as Itachi finally opened his eyes to meet her.

Having been put in a good mood by the light banter with the Nara, Sakura didn't stop herself as she bent and kissed Itachi directly on the lips. It was supposed to be a chaste one, but when the man shot out his hands to prevent her from moving away, Sakura didn't struggle. The cavern of his mouth was warmer than usual, although a little bit dry, probably due to the lack of rehydration and his exertion in the genjutsu. But he tasted like Itachi, and that was all Sakura wanted.

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><p><strong>Aww. Sakura's ready to give it a try, whatever <em>IT<em> is, but is Itachi?**

**Let me know what you think! Thank you so much guys, story alert hit above 100! Now, if only the review alert would go up a bit... :D I want to know what you wanna see more (or less ;])!**

**xoxo, Lady Aren**


	6. Chapter 6

**Without further ado...**

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><p>Sakura smiled at the approaching presence. "Reinforcements."<p>

She'd taken up Itachi's spot on the rock, and had been meditating for twelve hours straight. The rock was strangely comfortable – Itachi really knew how to pick them – but there was a strain behind her eyes and she was feeling parched like the weather in Sand. Right then, with a huge bottle of water in one hand and energy bars in another, Kakashi was a godsend.

Kakashi sat down beside her as she downed half a gallon of water and devoured two energy bars.

"So," Sakura began between bites, "how were the recruits?"

"Shino may well surpass his father."

"He impressed you that much?" Sakura was pleasantly surprised. Shibi Aburame was the pride of the clan for his superior skills as a shinobi. For Shino to surpass his father meant that he was well onto the way of becoming heir to the clan. The Aburame clan had a unique way of electing a leader: it was not by father-to-son, but by strength; unlike the Uchiha clan, where being an heir was a birthright.

Kakashi smirked. "Unlike Naruto, Shino thinks at least twenty steps ahead, holds multiple trump cards and uses the most efficient method to get things done. He doesn't waste time or energy."

"Why does he sound suspiciously like Shikamaru-kun?"

"Shikamaru actually thinks fifty steps ahead."

"My bad. And I suppose you think a hundred steps ahead?"

Kakashi had a knowing look in his eye. "More than that, Sakura-chan."

Sakura rolled her eyes. "How long has Itachi been with them?"

"Seven hours."

"Poor things."

Kakashi chuckled. "You don't think Itachi may be defeated? It's four against one, after all."

"You weren't defeated, were you? Itachi knows Sasuke's weaknesses too well, his genjutsu's even stronger than mine so Myuuko-san will definitely be confused, and Itachi's Sharingan will keep track of Shino's bugs and Kotaro-san's attacks," Sakura said as a matter-of-factly, taking another bite out of the energy bar.

"Looks like you've got us all analyzed down to a T. Hokage-sama will be coming tonight to take her pick."

"You make her sound like she's shopping."

"In a way, it is, isn't it?"

"Thanks for the food, Kakashi."

"Pleasure, Sakura. Itachi reminded me to."

With the final parting words that caused Sakura's breath to hitch, Kakashi disappeared in a swirl of leaves, thus missing the effect of his words on his former female student. But that only meant that Sakura didn't have to screen her emotions, and she allowed her jaw to hang open for a good minute before she reminded herself to stop looking like an idiot.

The next bite she took from the energy bar tasted strangely delicious.

Seven hours after Kakashi's unexpected visit, Sakura breathed a sigh of relief when Itachi appeared in her sight. She mustered a smile for the rugged-looking man who'd just finished training with four ANBU candidates. He was tired, but so was she. Then she spotted the slight limp in his walk. If she hadn't been looking for any signs of injury, she would probably have missed it. But now that she'd seen it, it was her job as a medic to rectify the situation.

Sakura furrowed her eyebrows at the man who'd settled down next to her on the rock. "What happened?"

Itachi seemed to instinctively know what she was asking about. "Aburame's bugs."

"What did they do?"

"They severed a few of my tendons. Aburame has reached a whole new level with those insects. He was nowhere near where I was."

Sakura stopped him as he prepared to take over the genjutsu. "Let me check you out first."

He yielded to her request, although not hiding his reluctance. Sakura removed the bandage he had around his thigh, quickly gathered chakra and placed her hand over the clothed surface, willing her chakra to penetrate his pants and into his system. His body instinctively tried to repel the foreign chakra, but Itachi managed to control his impulses to defend himself and allowed Sakura to continue her healing. She found his sliced tendon easily, and Sakura marveled at the precision of Shino's skills. Or his bugs'. If ninja weren't so secretive she would have asked for a demonstration of his abilities. But everyone knew that you kept the full extent of your skills a secret, using mostly 'signature' jutsu so as to keep your trump card _as_ a trump card. Even amongst teammates, you didn't let them in on your deepest, darkest secrets and techniques.

"Has Tsunade-shishou arrived yet?"

"I heard from Ibiki that she would be here in approximately ten minutes."

"Now that you can walk properly, we've got to be there to greet our Hokage-sama, ne?" Sakura grinned as she retracted her hand and carefully re-bandaged his leg.

Sakura got up, dusted her bottom and was turning around to go when Itachi grabbed hold of her arm gently, but firmly, causing Sakura to turn around with the question written all over her face.

"Thank you, Sakura."

Sakura smiled in understanding. "It is what I do."

Quietly, they made their way to the main square, where the four recruits were standing at attention in front of Morino Ibiki and Yamanaka Inoichi. Itachi and Sakura, with their masks in place, took their respective positions behind the interrogators. Not a minute later, the Fifth Hokage swept into view, her white cloak billowing behind her and her eyes shadowed by her Hokage headgear. Kakashi and Shikamaru followed closely behind.

Everyone seemed to stand a little straighter in the presence of the strongest ninja in the village, and the cloak of fatigue that had befallen upon them previously mysteriously disappeared. Tsunade, when not getting drunk or gambling, commanded respect and reverence. She held herself straight as a ramrod, her eyes, although hidden, watched her surroundings closely, and her lips would form a thin line that demonstrated just how serious she was when it came to matters of the village. She walked with an aristocratic grace of a cat, and her silent footsteps only served to exhibit her refined skills as a shinobi of Konoha.

Tsunade nodded once at Ibiki, and turned to face the four ANBU recruits. "Good evening."

"Good evening, Hokage-sama," only Kotaro replied.

Immediately, the man knew that something was wrong. Before he knew it, the place where Tsunade had originally been standing was no longer occupied by her, and in her place, it was Inoichi. Tsunade let out a sigh in the shadows where Inoichi should have been.

She pointed a finger at Kotaro. "Come with me."

The rest of the group watched silently as Kotaro followed the woman into the tent. An air of trepidation descended upon the three remaining recruits. It wasn't that Kotaro was incompetent in any way; he was an excellent fighter and an expert at taijutsu, but he simply wasn't vigilant enough to be in ANBU. ANBU members were on their guards _at all times_ when they were on duty, and it eventually became an ingrained habit such that even when off active duty, the instinct to take in any and all surroundings was always intact. Kotaro lacked that ability to observe, and that was his downfall.

The blonde leader emerged from the tent alone and finally addressed the remaining three recruits. "Congratulations. Uchiha Sasuke, Aburame Shino, Myuuko Toushiro, you are now officially instated as ANBU. Your captains will be training each of you personally and integrate you into the workings of the Black Ops. You will observe only one rule from now on; and it is that you take orders _only_ from me. Clear?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

"Excellent. Now meet your captains."

"Morino Ibiki, Head of Torture and Interrogation Force."

"Yamanaka Inoichi, Second-in-command of Torture and Interrogation Force."

"Nara Shikamaru, ANBU Captain of Unit One."

"Hatake Kakashi, ANBU Captain of Unit Two."

"Uchiha Itachi, ANBU Captain of Unit Three."

"Haruno Sakura, ANBU Head Medic."

There was a soft but collective gasp as the only female of the group stepped forward and revealed the face behind the mask. Green eyes glittered in the dark of the night, taking in Sasuke's split-second wide-eyed expression, Shino's furrow of eyebrows as it disappeared behind his sunglasses (why he wore them even at night she had no idea), and Toushiro's look of surprise bordering on disbelief. He'd been her patient many a times at the hospital, and had often shared his dream of joining ANBU with the pink-haired medic, having no idea that she was already in the Black Ops.

The general reaction of the group to Sakura's presence did not escape Tsunade's sharp vision either, and Sakura swore she saw a quirk of her mentor's lips in satisfaction. ANBU, after all, often had its own discrimination against women, and Tsunade had longed to prove them wrong in the recruits' assumption in an attempt to remove the discrimination as generations passed.

"Briefing will be at five tomorrow morning. Have a good rest." With her parting words, Tsunade nodded at the interrogators and leapt off with them. The two laziest captains in ANBU history, having no further orders, disappeared together with the Hokage as well.

The Uchiha brothers naturally gravitated towards each other, and Sakura heard Itachi say something about their father being proud of Sasuke's achievement. Meanwhile, Toushiro approached her, albeit rather shyly.

"All this time…Sakura-san!"

The person addressed chuckled. "We can't reveal our identities to just anyone, Toushiro-san."

"But…wow. Head Medic! That's amazing, Sakura-san. I can't wait to work with you," Toushiro gushed. He may have made ANBU, but his bubbly personality was as intact as ever. Sakura smiled at his enthusiasm.

"And right now, as your medic, you need rest, Toushiro-san. You want to _stay _awake during the meeting tomorrow," Sakura said affectionately, ruffling his sandy-brown hair though he was a good head taller than her. It didn't matter that he was two years older than she.

Grinning, she turned to the insect-wielder. "Hey Shino-san, I've been hearing about your fantastic abilities all day. Great job."

"I am touched by the flattery, Sakura-san. Although I must express my surprise at your involvement in ANBU."

"Oh?"

"I had not expected that you would have been the first of Team Seven to be recruited into ANBU. Certainly not when you were the female of the team with no particular talents to speak of, unlike the Uchiha's Sharingan and Uzumaki's Kyuubi."

Sakura sighed at the blatant lack of social skills of Aburame Shino. His impudence rivaled that of Sai's, and albeit being extremely observant by nature, he didn't seem to have picked up on essential social skills others had.

"Ah – well. It'd be boring if things went as expected, wouldn't it?" Sakura smiled, understanding and easily forgiving Shino's social faux pas. She didn't become Sai's confidante by taking things too seriously, after all.

"…"

"Never mind, now's not the time for idle conversation. Shino-san, you know the way back?"

"Yes. The genjutsu never fooled me for a second."

"Excellent, I'll see you tomorrow." The instated ANBU disappeared silently. "Toushiro-san?"

"I'll walk you home, Sakura-san!" Toushiro claimed happily.

"That's nice of you, Toushiro-san," Sakura said sweetly, heading towards the direction of Konoha, "but you really _do_ need to rest."

"I would be honored if you'd let me walk you home, Sakura-san." His tone had grown serious, so different from the playful banter she was used to with the man. Sakura whipped around to see that Toushiro was standing a few feet away from her, his chocolate brown eyes glowing warmly under the moonlight, but they held a tinge of sobriety that Sakura had never noticed before. Under his façade of a carefree personality was a man, a man of enough caliber to join the ranks of the most elite organization in Konoha. Sakura was not used to this new slant in the personality she had categorized as friendly and carefree.

Even his stance had shifted; what used to be a bounce in his step was now a casual leaning as he supported his weight on one leg, his shoulder slightly hunched and his head cocked to one side, making him seem taller and more in control than he actually was. Sakura recognized the look in his eye, and realized that her patient had never really seen her as his medic, but as a woman.

She didn't stop herself from responding to his signals. She let a small, soft smile grace her lips in understanding, and nodded slightly to the man before her. "Walk me home, then."

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><p><strong>Looks like Itachi has some competition?<strong>

**xoxo, Lady Aren**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey people, it's been a while. I apologize - getting good grades takes up more time than I'd thought.**

**Some issues brought up by one of the reviewers, _InARealPickle_: if you have the same issues and want it clarified, let me know and I'll do it as a whole. It's very hard to explain all the brainpower I have invested in the plot in just a few sentences here, and I don't want to waste space for those who have no issues with it.**

**I'll also make the relevant changes to the errors in the previous chapters (thanks again, _InARealPickle_!) after finishing the story or when I have the time to edit, right now I'm doing more of a touch and go thing. Finals are coming up - I need to hit the books HARD.**

**One more thing: Thank you for all your encouraging reviews, though unfortunately, Toushiro is only a slight distraction in the main plot. After all, I'm not writing about the crazy ups and downs of having too many guys chasing Sakura - I'm exploring a slightly deeper side of the characters and their development with time, so you'll see more of that. It's still quite a lot of drama, in my opinion. We'll see. :)**

**Enjoy chapter seven!**

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><p>The silence was companionable. Both of them were certainly fatigued from the trainings, and it was as if an unspoken consensus had been reached before the walk home started that the silence was not to be broken. Sakura didn't mind. He didn't want to pressure her and she didn't want to be pressured. She was perfectly content to walk alongside Toushiro, enjoying the night breeze and occasional howl of dogs.<p>

They reached the door to her apartment, and Toushiro decided to break the silence that had befallen on them. "Good night, Sakura-san."

Sakura smiled, reached out and ruffled his hair in a familiar manner. "Good night, Toushiro-san. And thank you."

Softly, Sakura unlocked her front door and disappeared into her apartment without a backward glance, and closed the door quietly as she disengaged the traps. However, the moment she did so, her instincts flared to life and a nagging at the back of her head told her that she was not alone in this apartment. She searched for a familiar chakra, but she was unable to detect any. Something simply told her she had company, but she couldn't find the hard evidence for it.

It was then the lights switched on on their own, revealing Itachi who was standing by the wall in her living room, already changed out of his ANBU uniform and wearing a V-neck black shirt with slacks.

"I nearly attacked you."

"I am glad that you did not."

Dropping her keys into a little bowl she placed by the door, Sakura strolled towards the kitchen to make some tea for herself and the unexpected company. Itachi followed her into the kitchen, his footsteps surreptitious and unrecognizable by sound.

"Tea?"

"Yes, thank you."

Humming to herself, Sakura placed the kettle onto the stove and waited for the water to boil. She removed her mask and hitai-ate, stripped off her arm and knee guards, and took off the vest that felt too warm against her chest. The kettle whistled, and she quickly turned off the stove, brought out the tea leaves (she never drank tea bags if she could help it) and placed the tea set on the table, beckoning the male in the kitchen to sit next to her at the table.

She handed him his steaming cup. "So what are you doing here?"

"I came to verify that you came home safely."

"You think that if Toushiro-san and I were attacked on the way back we wouldn't have been able to defend ourselves?"

"Not if I attacked."

Sakura chuckled, attempting to make light of the situation. "No really, why did you check up on me?"

"I came to verify that you came home."

Sakura sighed. "I'm not that easy, Itachi. I made an exception only for you."

"And I would prefer it stay that way, Sakura."

"Well now that you've verified that I've _come home_, I'd like to take a shower and sleep before dawn comes around," Sakura said civilly, standing up and making her way towards her bathroom. Before she entered, however, she turned around to face Itachi, who had trailed behind her.

"Join me?"

Within the next second Sakura's back was digging into the bathroom wall and Itachi's lips were a frenzy on hers. He trailed open-mouth kisses along her jaw and collarbone, hands tugging furiously at her shirt and skirt. Before she knew it Itachi's mouth had engulfed her right breast, and his hand was pleasuring the peak on her left mount. His erection was pressing firmly against her womanhood through her panties, and she could feel the familiar heat pool in her lower body. Sakura let out a high pitched mew as he bit down on her nipple, his hand twisting its twin fervently. Pleasure shot straight down to her pussy, causing her to thrust her hips from the onslaught of stimulation, rubbing hotly against Itachi's manhood.

Itachi groaned, his hot breath fanning the already over-stimulated right breast, causing Sakura to arch deliciously against him. She dragged him back up to her lips, engaging him in the now-familiar battle of tongues as she rubbed her bare chest against his hard muscles. Sakura moaned into the heated kiss at the friction between their bodies, and pressed herself even closer into him, as if trying to merge their bodies into one. Then his hand moved to push her panties aside as she pushed his boxers down to pool at his ankles, and then they were one. Itachi lifted her legs to wrap around his strong waist as he pushed himself deeper into her core, feeling just how wet and tight she was for him. Not for the brown-haired man who'd walked her home.

Sakura moaned loudly into his ear as he pistoned in and out of her. He didn't leave room for much foreplay, but that was entirely fine with the female, as the heat and friction between them increased, she could feel the two of them steadily climbing up the rhythm, rushing hurriedly towards the climax that both sought desperately. It didn't matter that she wanted him like bitch in heat; all she cared about was toppling over that edge. Stolen kisses and touches here and there had built up the sexual tension steadily, and now Sakura reveled in the knowledge that she hadn't been the only one secretly pining after the man.

His steady thrusting rhythm broke, slamming into her harder, faster, communicating his need to release inside her. She loved how he filled her up, his thick length rubbing all the right places inside her pussy, and as he increased his speed, Sakura could feel her climax approaching as her inner walls started to spasm around his cock, pulling him deeper into her womb.

"_Itachi!_" the scream tore out from her throat involuntarily as he spilled his hot seed inside her, sending her hurling towards a second climax when she'd barely gotten down from her first. She fell back limp against the wall, barely held up by Itachi. Her lover didn't seem any better; he was leaning heavily against her, his hard body pressed lazily into hers and his forehead resting in the crook of her neck.

Sakura didn't know how long they stood in that position for, but she started to push against him when she regained the strength in her limbs. "We didn't even make it into the shower."

Her movements stirred the spent cock that was still inside her, and she felt Itachi harden once more, pulsing pleasurably between her legs. Sakura quickly muffled her moan, but Itachi wasn't so shy in that aspect. In fact, he leaned so that his mouth was beside her ear and whispered huskily, "I believe it is wiser to shower _after_ our activities."

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><p>The warm, soft body beside him shifted, waking Itachi immediately. The dark room was a blur for a few seconds as his sleep-induced eyes adjusted their focal points. Every muscle in his being screamed of fatigue, but Itachi ignored them. Every agony was worth it, if it meant spending time with the pink-haired (though hers were currently black) woman beside him. The clock on Sakura's bedside table read four a.m., meaning that he'd had a grand total of two hours of sleep.<p>

Sakura shifted again, pressing herself closer to his body heat as the night daft swept across the apartment room floor. She was half atop his right arm, her head nestled comfortably in the crook of his neck, her lips apart and breathing lightly onto his skin. Her right leg was hooked over his right thigh, her cervix emanating heat directly on his outer thigh. Her full breasts were squashed deliciously against him, and Itachi closed his eyes and simply enjoyed the proximity with his lover.

Itachi belatedly realized the beginning of his addiction. What used to be completely physical satisfaction between the two of them had seemed to transpire into more. He found himself coming back for seconds and thirds when he'd already discovered all the secrets of her body and everything that made them tick together. It wasn't like he'd gotten to know her better than before – though he _did_, through work and random conversations – but he _felt_ that he knew her better than before. All he knew was that every time he looked into those emerald eyes, he wanted her.

He would want to see her respond to him, to display various emotions in response to what he did or what he said; he would want to listen to her voice, what she wanted to say; he would want to watch and observe her and he would want to talk to her. Even during work, where both of them had made it a point to keep everything professional, he couldn't resist being in her company and strike up whatever conversation that caught his fancy at the moment.

And she had yet to disappoint him. He liked how she held herself differently as the situation required her to: the graceful, feline walk as ANBU Head Medic, the efficient, no-nonsense walk when she was being a medic and acting as the Hokage's apprentice cum assistant, and the sultry, alluring walk when she was simply being a woman. He liked the intelligent conversations he could hold with her, and she definitely held her own, but he also enjoyed the playful side of her when she would tease him about his dislike of her favorite food. He especially liked how her expression could stay so smooth yet her eyes could communicate the depths of her passion; such that she could keep her cool façade but still be _alive_. It reminded _him_ to stay alive.

Unknowingly, his hand that had been resting on her waist had begun to absentmindedly trace light circles along her hip, stirring the young woman from her slumber. Sakura arched and stretched against him, working out the kinks of having mind-blowing sex and tangling with another body. Lazily, the dark-haired female pulled herself on top of him, so that she was resting on his chest fully, her breasts crushed against his chest. Clear onyx eyes met sleepy green ones as Sakura regarded him tiredly, still stuck between the fourth dimensional space of dream and reality.

"Mmm…how long have you been awake?"

"A little over ten minutes."

"Kami, I'm so tired."

"I apologize, Sakura."

"_What_- Oh no, I'm not talking about the sex, I loved it. I'm talking about the constant chakra depletion we've been experiencing for the past few days."

"Hn." She could still hear the apology in his tone.

"Anyway, need to get up soon. Shower and breakfast?"

"I presume it is sex and cereal."

"Someone has his thinking cap on at four fucking a.m."

Itachi remained quiet, letting his hands roam up her sensuous body and tangling his fingers in her soft, currently black locks. Her brilliant green eyes locked his in a gaze, emotion that he couldn't pinpoint or identify swirling in her orbs as she held his gaze almost forcefully. It was like a challenge he didn't want to break away from. They continued their little silent staring competition, Sakura completely disregarding the way his fingers were combing through her hair, kneading her scalp and giving her a good head rub. She just watched him quietly watch her, and Itachi enjoyed the way her eyes simply focused on nothing but him, expressive green eyes monitoring him carefully, although he had no idea what was going through her mind.

"Are we going to keep doing this?" She finally asked.

Itachi didn't hesitate in his reply. "If it pleases you, yes."

"But does it please you?"

"I would not do something if it did not please me to do so." His hands had moved to caress her cheeks affectionately, but she didn't seem to notice as she continued her intense stare at him.

After a few moments of silence, Itachi watched, fascinated, as her green eyes communicated her decision, as if she'd thought through something and had finally settled on a solution. She climbed off him and strode across the room to rummage through her closet.

"Do you want to use the shower?"

Itachi contemplated for a minute. "Please, thank you."

"Okay, but I'm going in first. And we're going to have cereal if you're staying for breakfast, so let me know your decision by the time I'm done." With that, the unfamiliar mop of black hair disappeared into the bathroom, leaving Itachi looking on amusedly from his comfortable position on her bed. He closed his eyes and perked his ears as he listened to her drawing the shower curtain close, and then the creak of the tap as she turned on the shower. The sound of running water was heard, and after half a minute, steam began to seep out from under the door. He could practically _see_ the water droplets cascading down her smooth, silky skin, the way some of them would slide along her collarbone and then roll down naughtily between the valley of her breasts, taking a dip at her belly button and then finally reaching her nether regions. Others would glisten as they ambled leisurely down her toned arms and thighs.

But he didn't have to imagine. The door wasn't locked, after all.

Sakura had to be stupid if she hadn't been expecting the calloused, warm hands that suddenly cupped her firm breasts, and the thick, engorged member that pressed itself between her butt cheeks. Itachi had perfect timing; both her hands were in her hair shampooing, leaving her vulnerable to any of his attacks. She continued washing her hair, as if she hadn't suddenly been accosted. That didn't mean that heat didn't pool between her legs, though.

Itachi had begun rolling her nipples between his fingers in tandem with his length sliding up and down on her backside, but Sakura disregarded it all and turned so that their chests were pressed together, reaching up and tangling her soapy hands in his black, long hair, kneading his scalp and steadily created more soap bubbles on his head. His hand reached behind her for the soap, and he began his slippery exploration of her body with the weapon in hand, gliding down her curved back over her buttocks, swerving to her thighs and made his way up her nipped waist, then along her arms that led to the hands in his hair. Gently, he moved the soap back down her arms to her shoulder blades connecting to her collarbone, and then pushing it down the valley between her rounded mounds before circling her breasts and finally ending his exploration at her peaks. He trailed a soapy hand across her taut stomach before dipping a finger between her legs, not to arouse, but simply to clean.

Sakura's hands had already left his hair by then, so Itachi bent his knees slightly as he covered the rest of her long legs with soap, lifting each foot to clean her heel and between her toes before standing up again and pushed Sakura into the way of the stream of water from the shower head. Sakura kept her eyes on his face and his on hers as he washed the soap out of her hair, suds flowing away from her body, and into the drain. His hands roamed over her body once more, sliding from the collarbone to between her breasts to the expanse of her stomach and between her legs. He knelt down and didn't forget the space between her toes and her heels, sliding his hand back up her toned calves sensually.

Sakura let out a hot breath. She was half-aroused, even though his gestures were not meant to do so, but she was feeling very well taken care of. The way he cleaned her was just so…comfortable. And it made her believe that there was something more between them than just sex. But she quickly dismissed the errant thought to the back of her mind and left it there to stew silently while she simply enjoyed the moment. She didn't want to ruin it by over thinking the whole ordeal. Maybe Itachi was simply raised to treat women well.

Sakura grinned as she grabbed the soap from Itachi. "My turn."

She gave Itachi similar treatment as he'd given her, fully appreciating his well-trained muscles and taut body. She ran her hands carefully over his chiseled chest, his six pecs, his under arms, his toned biceps, down his muscled back. She dipped her hands naughtily between his butt cheeks, but he seemed to take it in stride and only grunted his satisfaction. When she slid her hand down the back of his thighs to the sensitive spot behind his knees, he jerked lightly. Sakura smirked. He was actually sensitive _there_, of all places. She pretended that she didn't notice, but she stored the piece of information in her mind for future use, whether for blackmail or sex it was up to the circumstance.

After cleaning his feet, she moved her hands north, coming to his manhood that was semi-hard in arousal. One couldn't blame a man for not getting aroused when a beautiful girl with a perfect body and shining eyes had been running her hands all over him. She pulled her hand across his length, her fingernails lightly scraping against the skin of his cock. Then she slid her hands back down to his twin sacs and caressed them with her hands gently. Replacing the soap on the rack, she gently nudged Itachi under the shower head to wash away the suds in his hair and removed the soap from his body. She traced his body down and back up again.

When they were both done with the routine and standing stark naked in front of each other in the shower, Itachi reached out and pulled her towards him under the water, crashing his lips with hers and demanding entrance by sweeping his tongue across her lower lip. Sakura yielded, wrapping her legs around him as he hoisted her up for better access. He adjusted their positions easily, and he slid into her welcoming sex, wet, slick with juices and hot for him. Sakura moaned sweetly into his mouth, wrapping one arm around his neck and the other caressing his jaw as their kiss deepened together with his thrust. When he was fully sheathed, Sakura lifted her hips until he was almost out of her before sinking down on his manhood again, impaling herself deeply on him. She repeated the motion leisurely, enjoying the thickness of his length burning hot inside her, sending pleasant shivers up and down her spine and into the pit of her belly.

"Ooh…"

Gradually, her hips began moving more fervently, searching for the release that would give her the shuddering climax that her body yearned for. And she wanted to bring him with her.

She clamped down harder on him each time, his cock penetrating faster and deeper. With one hard thrust, he was embedded deep inside her slick canal, and she did something different. She stopped with moving her hips up and down, and instead kept him in her as she rolled her hips against his sensually, her walls contracting around him continuously, milking him for what he was worth. Her hips rolled faster and faster, until she was spasming on his cock uncontrollably, stimulating his dick so much that when she screamed her release, he came with her, spilling his seed in squirts inside her womb as she drew every last drop from him.

Itachi took a few steps back to lean against the wet tiles, just noticing that hot water was no longer flowing from the shower head. The heater had run out and the water was steadily getting colder by the minute. He lifted the woman lying pliant atop of him and slid out of her, Sakura whimpering at the loss of his limp cock. He set her down carefully on her feet and turned the shower off.

He leaned down to nuzzle her nose with his softly. "We need to head for the meeting."

"Ah."

Itachi smirked at her lack of verbal response. He kissed her brow gently. "I will see you at the ANBU Headquarters in ten minutes. Do eat your cereal."

"Mm."

Then the man was strolling out of the bathroom, leaving Sakura to breathe deeply before gathering her wits and following him. By the time she had toweled off and stepped back into the room fully dry, Itachi had just zipped on his final piece of clothing and was ready to leap out of the window. He gave her a final smirk that made her heart skip a beat before disappearing into the dark.

Sakura quickly assembled her ANBU gear, secured the mask and headed towards the Headquarters situated a little distance off the Hokage's tower. It was nearing five in the morning, and households that ran local businesses and markets were already beginning to stir. The town felt sleepy but Sakura was feeling invigorated and raring to go, after the session with Itachi. Sex with him was almost like therapy. It made her tired yet it woke her up.

Upon reaching the entrance of the meeting room, Sakura schooled her expression such that her exuberance didn't emanate from her so blatantly. She was entering a room full of shinobi with observation skills that could detect the slightest change in their surroundings, after all, and Sakura saw no reason to involve them into her personal life. They didn't need to know that she had slept with the captain of Unit Three and would continue to do so, at least for the next few weeks, if the conversation they had that morning was any indication.

She entered the room, in full ANBU mode, and saw that the new recruits had made it a point to be early. Some of the other ANBU members had arrived as well, namely Genma and Ino, but they had their masks on and had refrained from talking to the new recruits as the two of them stood at the far end of the room, whispering so softly that only the other would hear. Ino looked up at Sakura's entrance, and beckoned her over to join their conversation.

"So Sasuke passed," Genma said when she came into hearing range, the grin evident in his voice even though she couldn't see his face. "I heard Itachi didn't pass the blonde, though."

"Yeah."

He seemed slightly crestfallen at her lack of response, but Sakura couldn't be too sure when his face was hidden.

"And Kakashi really didn't pass anyone?" Ino inquired.

"No one."

"As expected," Genma piped up at the mention of his good friend. "Aren't you touched that he broke tradition for you?"

Sakura chuckled softly. "I won that fair and square."

"No one said you didn't," a deep voice said, materializing beside Sakura.

"Neji!" Sakura smiled widely, bumping shoulders with the white-eyed man. He had entered ANBU together with her on their first try, and coming from the same batch, had trained together for a few months, forming a strong, albeit unexpected, relationship with the Hyuuga. Sakura found talking to Neji to be rather entertaining, his dry sense of humor often catching her off guard and causing her to burst out in laughter. Her impression of the older shinobi had always been that he was a bit of a prudent prick, and the fight with Hinata in their genin years hadn't done anything to put him in better light. It wasn't until later in ANBU that she realized that his fight with Naruto changed his perspective of the world. Sakura was secretly very proud of her blonde teammate for being such an inspiration to the Hyuuga.

The more time she spent with him, the more she realized she enjoyed his company immensely and vice versa. It had been completely natural for her to have meals with him, or to seek out his company, but not once had she ever wanted to be romantically involved with him. It surprised her that she could be so comfortable with the man with the seal on his forehead, but she was, and she wanted what they had to keep going. Neji had also never instigated or implied that he had wanted anything more out of their relationship, so Sakura supposed that they were probably on the same page.

"Your hair's black."

"It'll wash out in a few days. I didn't realize you liked my pink hair so much, Neji."

"I didn't, until you didn't have it anymore."

Ino snickered. No matter how much Sakura tried to explain her situation with Neji, her blonde best friend had always thought that there were something more going on between the two of them. It didn't seem to matter to Ino that the Hyuuga was seeing the weapons mistress that used to be on his genin team. Sakura rolled her eyes. The one in denial was Ino; any one could see how she and Genma were involved, but Ino simply refused to acknowledge it. Genma didn't either, but the two of them were just together so _often_, and the fact that Ino knew things about Genma that no one else knew was a dead giveaway. Sakura had no idea why they bothered to hide their relationship when everybody knew they were seeing each other.

"I heard Naruto didn't pass," Neji continued, unaware of her little muse.

"Itachi didn't pass him." The thought slipped out before she had time to process it. Sakura literally _felt_ Neji tense and then quickly relax, as if nothing was wrong. But Sakura could feel the impending interrogation coming from the Hyuuga later. She had never addressed his captain by his first name without the suffix before.

Neither of them had the chance to continue the conversation, however, when the door swung open and Tsunade came sweeping into the room, Ibiki and Inoichi following closely behind. Sakura quickly left her company to take up her position behind her superiors, while the rest of the ANBU members fell in line before their respective captains, leaving the three new recruits at an absolute loss at what to do. Tsunade beckoned them forward with her finger, and three of them appeared on one knee before her immediately, heads bowed in respect and awaiting instruction.

"Masks down," Tsunade commanded, and immediately, the faces of the ever secretive ANBU were revealed to the new members.

Sasuke's eyes met hers and she could tell that he was still not used to the idea that she was in ANBU. Toushiro, however, grinned at her, the pleasure of seeing her evident on his boyish face. Sakura couldn't help but smile back. The Aburame, however, regarded her apathetically, just like how he did everyone else in the room.

Tsunade did the formal introductions.

Unit One comprised of Shikamaru, Ino and Hana; Unit Two Kakashi, Genma and Anko; Unit Three Itachi, Shisui and Neji; Unit Four, officially known as the Medic Unit and not an ANBU team, Sakura, Ino and Hana.

Sasuke was to join Unit One, much to Ino's excitement and to his dismay, since he had wanted to be on his brother's team. But Unit Three already had two Sharingans, and Tsunade didn't see the need to add another one when they also had a Byakugan. Unit Three worked as a fantastic team, anyways, having their mission success rate at a hundred percent. Thus far, they have yet to fail at any mission. Tsunade had decided that the addition of the Aburame's skills would diversify and strengthen the team even more. Toushiro was arranged to be under Kakashi's watchful eye.

Tsunade's voice thundered as she clasped her hands together. "And your captains will take it from here. Welcome to ANBU. We're not here to play games or socialize, but it _would_ do to know your teammates well. And never forget who you answer to." With that Tsunade left the room, while Ibiki and Inoichi simply chose to vanish into thin air to attend to whatever they had to attend to.

The captains dealt out their respective instructions to the new addition to their teams, and they were all dismissed. Sakura stood in the background and watched the most secretive of organizations in Konoha buzz with anticipation. Each unit had their own dynamics as the captains all worked differently. Shikamaru, predictably, yawned and told them to gather at a later time, and Kakashi did the same, except that unlike Shikamaru, he meant two hours later than the actual time he gave. Sakura wondered briefly if she should tell Toushiro. She thought better of the idea. Nothing like learning from mistakes. Itachi, however, began the initiation immediately, and none of his subordinates seemed to mind. In fact, Sakura suspected that they actually _liked_ the fact that their captain was a slave-driver. She certainly never heard Neji complain about his Sharingan-wielding captain.

Sakura had just left the room when someone fell in step with her. And by the expression he had on his face, she knew that the conversation wasn't going to be at all pleasant.

"Sasuke-kun."

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><p><strong>Poor Sakura, fending people off left and right.<strong>

**The much awaited chapter is coming up next!**

**Review! :)**

**xoxo,  
>Lady Aren<strong>


	8. Chapter 8

**Yes, I am very sorry for the late update. I've been down with fever for the past week, and as of now my head is _still_ pounding. May you never fall sick during the holiday season.**

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><p>"Itachi didn't come home last night."<p>

Sakura frowned. Of all the things that she had expected Sasuke to be unhappy about – her involvement in ANBU, her _not_ telling them about her involvement in ANBU, her _position_ in ANBU – she had not mentally prepared herself for a full frontal confrontation about the fact that she was sleeping with his older brother. By reflex, she decided to play dumb.

"What does that have to do with me?"

"I…know."

Sakura raised an eyebrow. Itachi, from what she knew about him (though it wasn't a lot), hadn't seem like the kind to divulge his business to others unless necessary. But Sakura also knew that playing stupid would get her further than revealing the truth, at least for a while more anyway, so she maintained the nonplussed look on her face.

"Know what?"

Sasuke's eyes darkened in frustration and barely restrained embarrassment. "That the two of you…"

"Are in ANBU?" This was getting a little bit too entertaining, although Sakura _did_ sympathize with her teammate.

"_No_," the dark-haired man walking beside her hissed through clenched jaws. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes as if to prepare himself. "That you slept together." After getting the difficult part out, the rest, it seemed, came tumbling out easily. "He came home smelling like a woman – my mom noticed it – and when I asked if it was you he said yes."

_Damn Uchiha and their sense of smell._

"Your mom doesn't know it's me, right? She doesn't disapprove or something right?"

"I…no and no. But that's not the point."

"Then what is?"

"I'm not exactly _comfortable_ with this new arrangement."

Sakura burst into laughter at Sasuke's obvious discomfort and disgust at himself for even _having_ the conversation. And he looked like a deer caught in the headlights at Sakura's sudden outburst.

"What's so funny?"

Sakura took one look at Sasuke's confused expression and promptly dissolved into another fit of giggles.

"Sakura," impatience was laced with his tone.

"N-no, it's just that…I had expected you to come at me about my ANBU involvement and all, I didn't expect this to be about Itachi!"

Sasuke smacked a hand over his face. "Kami, you call him by his name."

"Oh, Sasuke-kun, we're all equals now, you know."

"Yes-no, I mean, he didn't come home last night and that means it happened _again_, and it's really _weird_."

Sakura stopped in her footsteps. "Sasuke-kun."

Having not anticipated her stop, Sasuke had moved a few steps further than where she stood. Turning around, he snapped. "What?"

"I would really appreciate it if you would just ignore it."

"_How_?"

"Just don't think about it."

"I see him _every day_, Sakura."

"Did you feel uncomfortable just now during the meeting?"

"Well, no, but-"

"Then you won't have a problem."

"There _is_ a pro-"

"Sasuke-kun, I'm not doing this for your brother, I'm asking you of this for me. Please," Sakura implored, capitalizing on the fact that they were teammates and had a past together.

Sasuke looked torn for a moment. "Ugh. Fine."

"And don't tell Naruto."

"He'll probably find out."

"No he won't and not from you, directly or indirectly."

"Well, shit."

"You might want to learn some manners like your brother, Sasuke-kun," Sakura grinned, glad that it was settled.

"Pfft," Sasuke snorted. "Don't you start on me with _him_, Sakura. I get enough of that from my father."

Satisfied that she had convinced Sasuke not to spill the beans, Sakura enclosed him with a warm hug. Sasuke stiffened.

"So. Why didn't you tell us you were in ANBU?"

Sakura rolled her eyes. _And there you go._

* * *

><p>Sakura had just settled down in a corner of her favorite café for lunch when Neji poofed into the empty seat in front of her.<p>

Sakura smiled warmly at her good friend before taking a bite of her sandwich. "Hi."

Neji sat, as usual, with his straight, regal posture and arms placed firmly on the table. Heat waves were emanating off him, though – a tell-tale sign that he probably just came from training. The dark circles under his eyes were evident; the lack of sleep and physical exhaustion catching up on him. Feeling pity for her friend, Sakura broke off a piece of her sandwich and forced it into his mouth. He never would have accepted her offering otherwise. Neji chewed on it with a frown on his face, but he started to look a bit healthier after having a small taste of food.

"You wanna go get some lunch?" Sakura asked.

"I will be having lunch in the main compound today."

"You and your uncle getting along that well, huh."

"It is good progress."

"Okay, so what are you doing here? Has your captain dismissed you all already?"

"Yes."

Sakura made a non-committal sound to his positive response, and continued devouring her sandwich. She only had forty minutes for lunch, after all. Her Hyuuga friend had a thoughtful frown on his face, and she preferred to let him think it through before asking whatever he wanted to ask.

Sakura was three-quarters through it when Neji finally spoke up.

"Did something happen between you and taichou?"

"Not really, why?"

"You called him by his name earlier this morning."

Neji wasn't one to beat about the bush. If something was upset in his perfect world, he set about correcting it. And the need to know what happened such that Sakura addressed his captain differently was gnawing away at his consciousness. The last he checked Sakura didn't even _speak_ to the man. She disturbed his usual perspective of the world and he needed answers.

Sakura was about to open her mouth and shrug it off when their conversation was interrupted.

"Neji, Sakura-san."

Both shinobi turned to face a tall, lanky woman with dark brown hair in a bun at the back of her head, her brown eyes narrowed and glaring at the two of them. Sakura briefly wondered what she had done to piss the weapons mistress off. She barely conversed with the woman; she graduated with the batch before Sakura's and they'd never worked together before.

"Tenten-san."

"Tenten."

"I thought you were having lunch with Hiashi-sama."

"I am."

"You're _here_. Do you think I'm stupid?"

"I will be making my way to the main compound in a short while."

Sakura watched the exchange between the two lovers, feeling like a voyeur and strangely enjoying it. Neji never told his girlfriend that he was in ANBU, and naturally, his strong friendship with Sakura was never mentioned. Sakura had tried once or twice to convince Neji to tell the truth to Tenten, since ANBU allowed its members to let their family know about their involvement, instead of always just making excuses to go training or solo missions, but Neji had remained firm on the fact that Tenten was not _family_. Sakura hadn't wanted to push at that; Neji would have his own values and morals to uphold, and it wasn't up to Sakura to judge him. But because of that, she had either consciously or subconsciously stayed away from Tenten, reducing contact between the two of them. Not that they were good friends to begin with anyway, just mere acquaintances who'd met during the chunnin exams.

Right now Tenten's brown eyes were simmering with restrained temper, but Neji was looking slightly put out that his conversation with his pink-haired friend had been interrupted. He really adored how Tenten could innocently wear her heart on her sleeve – that was what brought them together in the first place – but sometimes, it was a chore that he read her so well. Add that to the fact that he didn't want to explain his relationship with Sakura which would reveal his status in ANBU, Neji was not feeling the most patient today.

"We need to talk." Tenten stared pointedly at him then her eyes flicked to the exit.

Neji let out an inaudible sigh and got out of the chair. "Bye, Sakura."

"Um. Bye." The apology shining in her green eyes told him that she was sorry for how the whole situation looked to his currently fuming girlfriend, and also encouraged him to spill the beans to his dark-haired lover. Not that he was going to listen to Sakura though – somehow it just didn't _feel_ right telling Tenten. Trepidation laced his footsteps as he followed his girlfriend out of the café. They were barely out of the building when Tenten grabbed his hand and teleported them to a training ground that they frequented often under Team Gai.

Once they reached their destination, however, Tenten promptly let go of his hand, as if scalded by his touch.

"I need to be at the main compound in ten minutes," Neji spoke quietly, not willing to do anything that might trigger his girlfriend's wrath.

"If you could find time for _Sakura_, you damn well can find time for me," Tenten bit out angrily, fire in her chocolate brown eyes that usually melted his cool exterior but currently alerted all his senses. Tenten definitely let her emotions show freely, and that included anger, which frequently resulted in physical attacks or weaponry abuse. "Or do you think that she's more important now?"

"Tenten," Neji began carefully, "I am not cheating on you with Sakura."

"The two of you are on _first name basis __**without**__suffixes_!"

The light trace in his white eyes that represented his pupil went blank, a sign that Tenten recently learned meant he was hiding something deliberately. It was the most subtle of changes, but Tenten knew Neji well enough to notice it.

"I am not lying to you, Tenten."

"Then _what_ am I supposed to make of it exactly?" Tenten nearly yelled, not even bothering to mask her frustration. She couldn't _exactly_ pinpoint him his tell-tale signs; then she'd lose all her directional markers around her usually stoic boyfriend altogether.

"I was just having a conversation."

"When you told me you were having lunch at the compound! If that's not lying then your idea of lying is absolutely warped!"

"The conversation merely took place before the lunch."

"So what, now I'm not interesting enough to have conversation with?"

"That is not what this is about."

"Neji, for a goddamn genius could you please not act so dumb?"

Neji looked straight into her eyes at the insult. "How am I acting stupid, Tenten?"

"You're acting stupid by _thinking_ that **I**am stupid! You don't even bother covering your loopholes when you lie!"

If it were anybody else, they'd have all their chakra pathways blocked in addition to the damaging of their liver. But because this was a girl whom he adored and swore to protect, Neji took in a deep breath instead.

"That is because I am not lying. They do not make sense to you right now because you are too blind with anger to see it."

"Then _prove_ it!"

"Would you like Sakura to verify it personally?"

"How do I know if she's telling the truth?"

"Tenten, please," Neji bit out, frustrated. He held out a hand when she opened her mouth for a retort. "We will finish this conversation later. I am already two minutes late for lunch at the main compound. In the meanwhile, please calm down."

Tenten watched in horror as Neji disappeared in a swirl of leaves, leaving her alone on the training grounds. Looking at the empty space that Neji had occupied just seconds before, she whispered softly, "Is that all I mean to you?"

* * *

><p>Sakura had only unlocked her door when Ino barged in, her long blonde hair sweeping powerfully behind her. Dumping herself on Sakura's couch, Ino crossed her legs and directed her clear, blue eyes to Sakura's annoyed green ones.<p>

"Yeah, do come in," Sakura muttered sarcastically as she moved past Ino and into the kitchen to finish boiling her dinner – miso soup.

When Sakura turned with the cooked broth in a bowl, Ino was standing in the doorway, with her arms crossed.

"That's all you're having for dinner?"

"You're not getting any."

Ino huffed. "Already had mine."

"With Genma?" Sakura grinned.

Her best friend rolled her eyes, giving her a _duh_ look.

"Just don't get married in secret or anything."

"Whatever, I'm here to talk about _you_."

"What about me?" Sakura asked, mildly curious as she swallowed some of the soup and nibbled on a tofu.

"Word on the street is that Neji broke up with Tenten over you."

"I thought the whole point of gossiping is not to let the gossiped know."

"When it concerns slandering my best friend's name and calling her a home-wrecker, I need to be sure," Ino said seriously.

Sakura looked hurt. "You don't trust me?"

"You guys are awfully close, you know."

"And it's not like their relationship was out in the open, so how did it become a gossip scoop?"

"Someone overheard them shouting at each other and your name was brought up once or twice."

"Neji never shouts."

"I don't care, that's what they're saying. But whatever, what I need to know is if it's true."

"I am not having an affair with Hyuuga Neji," Sakura declared, drinking more soup. "Happy?"

Ino paused as she scrutinized her best friend for a moment, before slumping into a chair opposite of Sakura. "Fine. Then who's this mysterious man you slept with?"

"Wow you were listening."

"Of course I was. Now stop trying to change the subject."

"He's just a man I've been sleeping with."

"Wait – sleeping wi- meaning more than once?"

There was a pause as Sakura finished slurping her miso. "Yes."

"_Sakura_!"

"What?"

"One-night stands are supposed to remain that. _One _night! And can you please eat more than that liquid for dinner."

Sakura shot Ino a look that said _she knew, yeah, but she was still doing it anyway, whether for sleeping with the man or the soup_.

"So?" Ino asked.

"So what?"

"Are you gonna tell me what he looks like, who he is?"

"Aw, Ino-pig. Let me have my fun. You already have Genma all over you, don't come and ogle at mine too."

"Whoa, wait, are you guys in a relationship?"

"Not the kind you're thinking of, no."

"Then what are you _doing_?"

"They're just sleeping arrangements, Ino."

"You're not a fucking escort, Sakura."

"_Ino_," Sakura growled, turning serious. "This is a mutually agreed upon arrangement. I am not sleeping with him for money nor am I giving him any. Mutual consensus, Ino, _mutual_."

Ino had the sense to look embarrassed. "That's not what I mean, Sakura…"

"Then what did you mean?"

"I mean, you guys are not even in a relationship but are sleeping together on a regular basis-"

"Why must we be in a relationship to have sex regularly?"

"Because…because that's not you, Sakura. One-night stands, I get it, but the same person over and over again when you're not even seeing each other? It's just…not you." Ino looked a bit crestfallen and lost for words, something that rarely happened. Sakura realized that she must have acted really out of character for Ino to flounder like that.

"All right, so I'm physically attracted to him and sleeping with him doesn't seem to quell it. But what does that have to do with anything?"

"Maybe you like him? As in _him_ him?"

"I don't even know him that well!"

"So maybe you like the part that you know about him."

"You make so much sense, Ino-pig."

"It would be easier if I knew who he is!"

"And it would be easier for me if you didn't."

Ino stuck out her tongue. But then her expression sobered as she contemplated on Sakura's predicament. "Just, be careful."

"Be careful of what?"

"Oh, I don't know – getting pregnant and not being able to tell him about it because he'd probably run, or worse, fall in love with him only to realize it's one-sided. Familiarity is dangerous waters, Forehead, especially when it's _this _kind of arrangement."

Sakura sighed. "I know, you're right. But right now it just feels like something I want to do."

"Then you'd better take all the precautionary measures."

Sakura nodded obediently.

"Good," Ino declared, leaning over the table and looking at Sakura seriously. "Now can you give me some hints as to who he is?"

Sakura laughed, pushing Ino away, "No."

"Come on!" Ino whined as Sakura got up to clear away the dishes. "Just a little hint."

"Well," Sakura grinned with a knowing glint in her emerald orbs as she looked over her shoulder and straight into bright blue eyes shining in anticipation for new information, "he's drop dead gorgeous, that's what he is."

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><p><strong>I've always thought Neji was an awkward man...and my dream to develop it further has come true in the form of this story. Hoorah!<strong>

**And if Sakura is saying what I think she's saying...could it be possible that the two of them can develop into something more...?**

**Until next time.**

**xoxo, Lady Aren**


	9. Chapter 9

**Thank you so much for your reviews and alerts! It fueled my writing.**

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><p>After another half an hour of mindless chatter, with Ino attempting to trick Sakura into revealing the identity of her mystery man every now and then, the blonde bombshell left. Her fellow ANBU's chakra signature had barely disappeared into the night before a very, very warm body trapped her against the door, hot breath fanning the sensitive spot behind her ear as he spoke huskily.<p>

"I am very glad you think so highly of me, Sakura. Although the choice of words leaves much to be desired, I think."

His deep, velvet voice sent a chill down her spine that had nothing to do with the cold night air and Sakura literally had to chant a calming mantra to pull herself together. She had it bad if she couldn't think coherently when he'd barely touched her. Or maybe she was just nervous about how _he_ felt after hearing her semi-confession regarding her true feelings on the matter of their sleeping arrangement.

"Oh, don't worry about that; I was just throwing a chewy bone to an overenthusiastic puppy." Sakura was relieved that her voice didn't sound as shaky as she felt. A little breathless, maybe, but not shaky, definitely not. "And it's not polite to eavesdrop on other people's conversations."

"Short of doing laundry for you there is absolutely nothing to do in your storage room."

"You could have gone for a long, night walk."

Itachi chuckled, a deep rumble from his chest that had Sakura squeezing her thighs together to prevent from melting to the floor altogether. The man _really_ knew how to use his voice to his advantage. Sakura briefly wondered if it was something he picked up during his seduction missions. "I prefer learning about your opinion of our…arrangement."

"It's unfair that you know my opinion but I don't know yours."

"I am more than satisfied with our arrangement, Sakura," Itachi whispered into her ear. He was doing it again. His voice felt like silk wrapping coolly around her heated nape, and the way her name rolled off his tongue made Sakura weak in the knees. Shit, how come he had this technique in his bag already full of arsenals? It came as a surprise that she never knew of his particular talent until then. Did his voice sound like that when he was commanding his unit? Thank kami there were no women on his team then, Sakura was pretty sure that even straight males might have been tempted to become gay just for his low, seductive voice alone.

"Well, uh, that's good," Sakura replied unevenly, not really sure of what to say. "I guess."

"Do I make you nervous, Sakura?"

At his comment, Sakura whirled around, forcing Itachi to take a few steps to accommodate her sudden actions. "Okay, now you're just taunting me."

Without waiting for a reply, Sakura crushed her lips against his, and found them moist, warm and absolutely delightful. Sakura was a little miffed as he kept his lips sealed, preventing entry into the warm cavern of his mouth. Becoming a little impatient, Sakura nipped his bottom lip with her teeth, not drawing blood, but hard enough to convey her frustration at his deliberate teasing. He finally relented, but Sakura could taste the smirk on his lips. She didn't pause to think about it for too long though, as his tongue came out and engaged her in their usual battle of dominance. Still stinging from his jaunts earlier, Sakura didn't back down, tackling him bodily until they fell together onto the couch, Sakura pinning him in place between her legs as she exerted her supremacy over him.

They broke apart to remove his shirt and her top, before coming together again in a dance of sensuality. Sakura rained kisses down his jaw, his neck and his flat plane of chest as he smoothed his hands down her back, dipping his hands under her boy shorts to graze her bare bottom for a moment before moving up her stomach and to her arms. By then Sakura's small mouth had already reached below his belly button, and looked at him with lust-filled eyes before she smirked lazily and leaned down, running a hot, smothering tongue over his navel. She'd just _licked_ him so close to his manhood that he jerked involuntarily.

The couch was small and its texture rough and uncomfortable, so before he lost his mind, Itachi quickly relocated them into her bedroom. There, he had Sakura under him, pushing against his chest as she tried once again to be on top, but Itachi wouldn't let her. He grabbed her wrists and pinned them above her head as he attacked her lips hungrily, Sakura returning the favor with equal fervor. Her sweet scent drew him in, and Itachi could feel himself slowly falling into the mental abyss that he always seemed to experience when having sex with the woman. Sakura, for some reason, had the ability to stop his conscious thoughts and simply follow his instincts at her will, but he would, of course, rather she did not know that. Knowledge was power after all, and Itachi did not like how she had that power over him. It was best kept a secret.

Suddenly, the woman under him broke his hold and flipped them over, her legs clamping down on his waist to make a point. Itachi got the hint, and allowed her to slowly relax as she peppered light kisses all over him. Sakura had her arms around his head, filling him with the scent that was all Sakura, a sweet smell that he had become familiar with over the past few weeks. Her soft mouth molded against his, her tongue playfully coaxing his into a dance, this time in harmony instead of battle. That was all it took. He was now fully aroused.

Then cold air hit him as Sakura pulled back, and lifted her knees to remove her shorts together with her underwear. She proceeded to rid him of his slacks and boxers, and within seconds that only ninja could accomplish, they were in a dance of harmony once more, bare bodies rubbing heatedly against each other.

Itachi felt something slippery and cold on his stomach and he moved his hand there to investigate, only to find that Sakura was so wet that she was actually _dripping_. The added knowledge only served to harden his manhood unbearably, and he plunged three fingers into her, earning a loud gasp from the woman above him.

She contracted hard around his fingers, and he drew them out slowly, only to delve in once more. He felt her body shudder above him, her mouth no longer capable of kissing as she moaned and sat back up in an attempt to draw his fingers deeper in her pussy. He pulled out and was about to dive in again when she grabbed his wrist firmly pressing it down onto the mattress. Then she shifted downwards until their sexes were aligned, and, never breaking eye contact with him, impaled herself hard.

Itachi grunted as he felt her inner walls close tightly around him, her warm slickness easing the friction but increasing the sensation. She set the pace slow at first, enjoying every shiver, every friction, every touch. He was so hard, and he filled her up so much. But as pressure built and the need to release made itself known, Sakura began moving faster, grabbing onto his hands that were gripping her waist firmly as he played his part and thrusted upwards. Sakura shifted slightly to the right, causing his bulbous tip to hit directly onto her sensitive spot, wrangling a near-scream from the delirious woman.

He was hitting so deep inside her that he actually felt a barrier. And every time he sheath himself into her he realized that her back would arched beautifully, face contorted in pleasure. He pushed her hips against his own more forcefully, feeling his own climax building up with hers. Finally, Sakura choked out a scream as she came, walls contracting fervently around his cock, drawing out his own orgasm as he shot warm semen into her womb. Itachi let out an animalistic growl of satisfaction as he came inside his lover, long hair plastered to his face by perspiration, his fingers bruising her hips as he forgot himself and pummeled into the depths of ecstasy.

Exhausted, Sakura fell forward onto his chest, heaving heavily as she curled her limp arms around him. Beads of perspiration were running down her face and her back, overall she felt _wet_ against him. She buried her nose into his neck as he stroked her back languidly.

"Why do you still smell so good?"

"You smell wonderful, Sakura."

"You've gotten into my pants already, save your sweet talking for another day."

Itachi chuckled, the rumble in his chest sending a shudder down her body. It was not missed by the ANBU captain. "That was not flattery."

"Mm," Sakura replied sleepily, her head growing heavier as she closed her eyes.

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><p>Suddenly Sakura was propelled from the white abyss into reality. She blinked her sleepy eyes slowly; trying to figure out what had woke her up. Then she realized that something was very <em>hard<em> and pulsing between her legs and inside her pussy.

"Kami," Sakura rasped, turning her eyes to meet onyx ones heavily lidded with lust. "How did you even manage to get morning wood after last night?"

Itachi just smirked as he flipped them over and silenced her half-hearted protests with a kiss.

After they came down from their high, Sakura turned to lie on her side as she regarded Itachi. "Shouldn't there be something about Uchiha males being careful spreading their seed around? The Sharingan comes with inheritance, after all."

Itachi laughed quietly, a deep, smooth bass reverberating through his chest. "You do not have to worry about that, Sakura."

"Why not? Do you have some secret technique or something?"

"The technique isn't a secret."

"Hmmph. Would your clan be furious if they found out about our…sleeping arrangement?"

"I am not controlled by my clan, Sakura." Offense laced Itachi's tone and she was quick to fix it.

"I didn't mean that, I was just trying to figure out what sort of circumstance I'm getting myself into."

Itachi sighed lightly. "The clan would of course prefer if I wed another Uchiha, but nothing has been set in stone, and when it does, it would be by my will."

"So it would be best if I stayed out of the spotlight, huh."

"I see no need to hide nor flaunt."

"Yeah? Just wait 'til your clan bans you from meeting me. Then you'll be stuck there pining for me every night."

"If I ever do so, then so will you."

"A little full of yourself, aren't you."

"I believe you started it."

"Oh shush."

"I did not realize you were such close acquaintances with Neji-san."

"You probably didn't know I'm Shisui's drinking buddy, either."

"One of."

"Oh you keep track?"

"I make it a point to monitor my unit."

"Then how come you didn't know Neji and I were good friends?"

"I was only aware that he was in a relationship with Tenten-san."

"He still _is_."

"It is entirely possible that they have ended their relationship during the last seventeen hours."

"How is it you can make it sound so long? It's only about half a day."

"Enough time, I believe."

"Okay, fine, so I don't know. I never pegged you for the type to gossip about others' love lives, Itachi," Sakura smirked.

"If my memory serves correct, you did not really _peg_ me for anything at all, Sakura."

"Kami you're like a combat personnel, tape recorder and tracking device all rolled into one."

"Hn."

"So you're done training Shino-san and initiating him already?"

"That had been completed since yesterday afternoon."

"So…" Sakura dragged out the word, "do you already have plans today?"

"I suppose you are suggesting something, Sakura."

"Um," the naked woman beside him shifted uncomfortably as her eyes flitted to somewhere across the room before settling back on his. "Would you spar with me today?"

There was something incredibly irresistible about a beautiful woman, bare naked in bed and shyly asking for a duel. It made her strong, yet vulnerable, sexy yet demure at the same time. Itachi swiftly covered her smaller form with his larger one, and it was a good three hours later that they finally made it to the training grounds.

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><p>Sakura winced as she molded chakra to heal the deep gash in her arm. There were leaves and random twigs in her mussed up hair, soil smeared at the side of her face, and scuffles and bruises on her knees and arms. Whatever in hell had possessed her to ask Itachi for a spar, she had no idea. He was a genius strategist, a specialist in ninjutsu and genjutsu, and extremely well-trained in taijutsu combat. In other words, <em>he had no weaknesses<em>. Above all, he was _male_, giving him an unfair edge over her naturally smaller and more petite physique. Her only advantage over him was her perfect chakra control that he couldn't copy, but that was quickly running out as she dodged attack after attack and added a few of her own.

Itachi wasn't one to relent; he gave his all in every training, no matter who or when. Sakura could tell that he wasn't going easy on her, and she was secretly grateful for it, because she knew she would have been pissed if she realized he was holding out on her. Even so, Sakura knew she was losing, but Itachi deliberately wasn't letting her off the hook so easily. It was as if he'd planned the entire fight, drawing it out as long as he could (kami, the man brought _stamina_ to a whole new level), and always forcing her into a tiny corner with just enough leeway for her to escape. She felt that she was simply led on a wild goose chase by the man.

But Sakura knew Itachi wasn't much better off than her. Though she was barely keeping up with him, she'd manage to slip in her own attacks along the way, forming a plan as she went, judging the situation on the spot and making split-second decisions. She had managed to cut off a few of his chakra pathways (courtesy of training with Neji), but she hadn't been able to attach any of her chakra threads onto him. Itachi's Sharingan was too strong; he could detect her flow of chakra easily and deduce her intent, so her tutelage with Kankuro hadn't been able to be put to good use with this spar. Perhaps it was time she considered getting herself a puppet.

Sakura inhaled deeply, forcing air into her lungs as she attempted to regain her breath. She had never encountered anyone with such proficiency in every mode of combat, with the exception of Tsunade-shishou. Sakura supposed that was why she was the Hokage, her mentor was the jack of all trades but what she excelled at was that she was equally strong in all her trades.

That was when her train of thought was halted as she felt the tree wrap an arm maliciously around her neck. When had she fallen into a genjutsu? She had been studiously avoiding eye contact with the Sharingan for the past five hours.

"Kai," Sakura quickly expelled the genjutsu and took cover. But the ground beneath her suddenly opened and Sakura found herself sinking into quicksand. Damn, he had the whole place under genjutsu!

Expelling this genjutsu with a little more effort, Sakura quickly darted off again to cast a genjutsu to hide herself within his illusion. It quickly became a game of shifting planes of reality, and she was at a strong disadvantage without the aid of the Sharingan. She needed to find the real Itachi – and fast – before her chakra supply gave out. She made it into a clearing, and over there, collapsed.

A kunai shot out from the dense forest and grazed Sakura on the arm, drawing blood. Somewhere within the forest, the real Sakura had attacked Itachi from behind, but the man, with his abnormally fast reflexes, had her against the tree and a kunai to her neck before she could fight back.

"I don't know what I was thinking, asking to spar with you," Sakura panted, her body growing limp against the tree as the clone that had collapsed in the clearing vanished.

"How many times have Sasuke and Naruto fallen for that trap?" Itachi inquired, relaxing his hold on the female, instead slipping an arm around her waist to support her.

Sakura grinned weakly. "Enough times."

Too spent to make small conversation, Itachi and Sakura left the training grounds quietly. "I'll see you around, Itachi," Sakura smiled tiredly before continuing on her way home, leaving Itachi to make his way back to the Uchiha compound.

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><p>By the time she reached home, Sakura's muscles were <em>screaming<em>. Painfully, the kunoichi dragged herself to the bathtub, stoppered and released hot, steaming water into it. Fatigued to the extreme, Sakura slumped beside the bathtub onto the tiled floor, welcoming the cool surface that seemed to placate her burning muscles by just a _tiny_, weeny bit. She was never going to challenge an ANBU captain again. Even if she had to, she'd make sure to play dirty by bringing in reinforcements. She had given Itachi a run for his money, but that didn't leave her anywhere better.

The water sounded like it was about to spill over, so Sakura quickly pried her body away from the tiles, turning off the tap and removing her clothes. Stepping into the shower, Sakura washed away the soil and other remnants of her tryst with the ground, soaped her hair and body, before spraying them away. She smiled to herself in anticipation of the long, warm bath ahead, possibly for the rest of the month, as she worked out the soreness that seemed to have been embedded permanently in her muscles by the vicious ANBU captain. She belatedly realized that Kakashi must have been holding back on them when Team Seven trained together.

Sakura lowered her body into the warm water, sighing contentedly. Leaning back with a towel to support her neck, Sakura closed her eyes, promising that it was just for five minutes, and promptly fell asleep.

The next thing she knew was that it was very cold. Sakura's eyes fluttered open, jerking awake and choking on water. Scrambling out of the bathtub, she grabbed a towel and dried herself before walking into the bedroom quickly for something warm to wear. She was going to _kill_ herself if she developed hypothermia because of sleeping in cold water. Her skin was wrinkled from immersing herself in water for too long.

After cleaning up the bathroom, Sakura stumbled into the kitchen and decided that she needed something hot and salty. Too tired to do anything else, Sakura chopped some vegetables and added an egg into a boiling pot of instant noodles before grabbing a pair of chopsticks and began slurping noodles at the kitchen table.

Halfway through, however, came a polite knock on the door.

Curious as to who would visit her so late into the night, Sakura set the chopsticks down and opened the door.

"Neji." During the period of time that spanned their friendship, she had never set foot into his living quarters, and vice versa. She widened the door. "Come in."

"You look tired, Sakura."

"I am."

A frown etched itself across his brows. "You did not have a shift in the hospital today."

"I was training."

"I see. Would you like me to come back another time?"

"No, just come in, Neji," Sakura mustered a kind smile as she limped back into the kitchen to her noodles.

"It is almost ten."

"And?"

"You were just having dinner?"

"Yeah, I was too tired to do anything before," Sakura replied vaguely, waving it off. "So what are you doing here?"

"Tenten thinks I am cheating on her with you."

"I know."

"I do not know how to convince her otherwise."

Sakura fixed her eyes on his white ones pointedly. "ANBU."

"Out of the question."

"You can't maintain a relationship like that with lies, Neji."

"I am not lying to her where it counts."

"Look, the fact that you sought me out instead of ambushing me during lunch tomorrow means that Tenten means a lot to you. So why can't you just tell her the truth?"

"It does not feel right."

"Your _instincts_ are warning you off? Why?"

"I do not know."

Sakura scrutinized the long-haired man sitting across her kitchen table. "What was your plan originally? To prove her wrong?"

"That you would tell her we are not having an affair."

"That's not going to work."

"It is worth a try."

Sakura gritted her teeth at the Hyuuga's stubbornness. "Neji, doing that will only worsen your relationship."

"You do not know for sure."

Sakura pinched the bridged of her nose. "Are you ready to break up with her?"

Sakura gaped as Neji's eyes widened a fraction as he contemplated the idea. That was _not_ the correct reaction.

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><p><strong>More problems for Sakura...and a budding relationship with Itachi! Or, at least she knows that he can hold his own against her. Review!<strong>

**xoxo, Lady Aren**


	10. Chapter 10

**It's been ages. I know. But a reader PM-ed me and it spurred me to upload this. Hearts to _lights-prevails-darkness_!**

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><p>"That's about it," Sakura said cheerfully to Konohamaru as she wrapped the gauze securely around his arm. "No extensive training until three days later. And don't try to cheat your way out of this, or you'll find yourself back here with the exact same injury. Then you can kiss goodbye all your future missions, got it?"<p>

Konohamaru bit his lip as his cheeks reddened in slight embarrassment at how he was being read so easily by the older jounin. _Naruto-nii's teammate is so scary._ Nodding obediently, he scurried out of the room and got out of the hospital as fast as humanely possible. He, like all other shinobi, had an innate phobia of hospitals. Sakura was about to signal another patient in when Shizune appeared in her line of sight, flustered as she always was in the middle of running a hospital.

"Tsunade-sama requests your presence in the Hokage's office."

Sakura nodded her acknowledgement and turned to change the sign on her door to 'closed' before leaving for the Hokage Tower. She was standing in the same room with other ANBU captains within minutes, mask in place and waiting patiently for instructions.

Tsunade cleared her throat. "Initiation's over, now's the time to start training them in specific areas. Inoichi will begin his training this afternoon, followed by Kakashi and Shikamaru next week. Itachi and Sakura, I expect a proposal on my desk by the end of this week."

"Did I miss something?" Sakura asked.

"Itachi will brief you on your way out. Dismissed."

Itachi was waiting for her at the Hokage Monument. "So what was the proposal about?"

"Tsunade-sama has suggested combining the genjutsu training with the art of seduction."

"Why?"

"I am sure Hokage-sama has her reasons."

"So we have to come up with a curriculum of sorts?"

"No, it is a proposal of what will be done during the week of training."

"How do you want to combine genjutsu with art of seduction?"

"Who taught you the art of seduction?"

"Tsunade-shishou. You?"

"I was taught by Kakashi-sempai."

Sakura blanched. "Really?"

"I do not see a problem."

Sakura wrinkled her nose in disgust. "I'm sorry. It's just…imagining a man teaching another man how to seduce…and when it's _Kakashi_ who used to be my sensei, being the porn-loving man he is…er. Sorry. Shudders."

Itachi's lips lifted to an almost smirk before he quelled the urge. "Kakashi-sempai is very good at what he does."

"With that face he doesn't even need to do a thing. The scar only adds on to his attractiveness," Sakura snorted, irked that some shinobi just had it easy.

"I believe you do not have trouble in your expertise, either."

"Neither do you," Sakura returned the compliment pleasantly. "So, what have you got in mind so far?"

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><p>Sakura smiled awkwardly, the tension in the air effectively stealing away her appetite, not to mention that Tenten was glaring at her expectantly, making her feel that the slightest movement would set the entire village on fire. She tried to breathe, but air seemed to get stuck halfway down her windpipe, making Sakura lightheaded from the invisible suffocation.<p>

Worse, she recalled _exactly_ what led to this situation.

"_Neji," Sakura began somberly, "do you still have feelings for Tenten?"_

"…"

"_Hyuuga Neji."_

"_I am uncertain."_

_Jade eyes closed in irritation as a frown found its way into the lines of her eyes together with a downturn of her mouth. "What do you mean by that?"_

"_I do not know how to answer your question."_

"_A simple yes or no will do."_

"_It is not that straightforward."_

"_Oh, what, sometimes you want to kiss her and sometimes you don't?"_

"_Nobody wants to kiss another all the time."_

"_Do you still love Tenten?"_

_Neji didn't hesitate in his answer. "I never loved her. I was…attracted."_

"_So it never progressed further than that?"_

"_No."_

"_Then you can go find a way to explain the situation to Tenten yourself."_

"_So you will explain to Tenten about our non-involvement?"_

"_It will ruin whatever you have left, Neji, are you sure?"_

"_It is worth a try," the Byakugan user repeated patiently._

"_Why are you not listening?"_

"_I am."_

"_But you don't believe me."_

_Neji nodded._

"_Just don't regret it," Sakura rubbed her temples._

"_Goodnight, Sakura," Neji said before he disappeared in a puff of smoke._

_Sakura's eyes widened in realization. Fuck, how did she not realize he was a clone?_

How did she ever commit the faux pas of leaving herself vulnerable to attack from a weapons mistress during dinner? She wanted to eat, dammit.

"The tempura's really good."

Tenten didn't even look at the food. Instead, she leaned forward from across the table, her elbows placed indignantly on the tabletop and fingers interlocked in a tense pose.

"Let's cut to the chase, Sakura-san," Tenten whispered furiously.

Sakura cursed the Hyuuga for 'needing to use the washroom'. He was going to need a whole lot more when she was done with him for leaving her to the dogs. Or, in this case, a big, bad, _angry_ wolf who was extremely displeased at her trespassing of territory.

"Tenten-san," Sakura began slowly, careful to keep her voice neutral, "despite how things appear to you, Neji and I are not having an affair."

"If you're not having an affair," Tenten quoted her snottily, "why the hell do you look like you are?"

"Neji and I are just good friends."

"Neji and I were good friends before we got together," Tenten narrowed her eyes. "And who gave you permission to call him by his name?"

Sakura clasped her hands together uncomfortably. "Tenten-san, is there anything I can do so that you'd believe me?"

"Stop having contact with him."

"I will try," Sakura replied readily. But it appeared to be the wrong answer as Tenten's nostrils flared up notably.

"You _will_, Sakura-san, or I'll stop being polite," the older woman said testily.

Sakura tensed as hostility settled like a thick, itchy blanket over them. Sakura sighed. "Would it help if I said I am sort of seeing someone else?"

"Why would I believe anything you say?"

"Because your relationship with Neji is beautiful, and I have no intentions of coming between the two of you, whether now or in the future."

"I know when bullshit is thrown straight in my face," Tenten spat.

"Sakura."

Both women looked up, slightly startled, having been utterly consumed by their intense conversation. Long, straight blonde hair greeted their sight, complimenting cool, unreadable sky blue eyes that were directed at brown ones.

"Ino, what are you doing here?" Sakura asked, recovering from the initial shock.

"We've got an emergency at the hospital, Shizune requested your presence," Ino replied readily, gaze flickering to Sakura for a millisecond before training them on Tenten again.

"I'm not on shift-"

"That's why I'm here." Ino cut in short-temperedly. "Sorry to cut short your dinner, Tenten, but we really need Sakura at the hospital. It's a particularly nasty one," Ino said unapologetically. Then, looking pointedly at Sakura, "Shizune can't hold the fort all on her own, you know."

Sakura sighed inaudibly. She was grateful for the rescue, but this was a conversation that really could help patch up the problem Neji and Tenten were having. She cast an apologetic look in Tenten's direction. "I am very sorry, Tenten-san, but I have to go. Please know that Neji and I are simply friends and we have no inclination to go any further than that."

Ino raised an eyebrow at Sakura's proclamation. "This dinner's about that?" Sakura paused for a moment and briefly wondered if the emergency in the hospital was the truth or not. Either that, or Ino's acting skills just went to a whole new level. Tenten blushed angrily.

"Oh, I've heard the rumors," Ino said offhandedly, "and I, for one, know who Sakura's sleeping with and I can guarantee it's not your man, Tenten."

"That's good to hear," Tenten said stiffly, focusing her eyes carefully on her food.

"Well, now that that's cleared up," Ino latched onto Sakura's upper arm, "we really need to go. People are dying left and right here."

Undecided as to strangle her best friend or not, Sakura got up from the booth and nodded to the dark-haired woman politely. "Enjoy the rest of your dinner, Tenten-san. I am sorry for this whole mess. Good night."

A unexpectedly strong pull found Sakura walking down the familiar road toward her home.

"The tempura wa-"

"Really good, I know," Ino finished, releasing the death grip on her best friend. "And are you nuts? I thought you had more sense than _that_."

"Neji forced me to."

"You mean he Sixty-four palmed you and took over your body?" Ino muttered sarcastically.

"No, but he insisted that my talking to his girlfriend would sort things out."

"And we all know that when we need relationship advice we go to Hyuuga Neji, Konoha's resident relationship guru."

Sakura rolled her eyes at Ino's antics.

"Seriously! Any outsider would think you were flaunting in her face. She looked ready to stab you with those chopsticks."

Sakura shuddered. Anything in the weapons mistress's hands became a lethal weapon. "You think I don't know how it looks like?"

"The fact that you were there having dinner with her suggests that you don't have the _slightest_ inkling."

"Ugh."

"'Ugh' is right, you idiot. What's gotten into you?"

"Stress."

"Then go find that mystery man of yours and de-stress!"

"Ugh."

"I didn't realize you were monosyllabic."

"Shut up!" Sakura exclaimed good-naturedly.

"Oh, two syllables. We're making progress."

Sakura laughed. "Okay, point taken. Wanna come in or not?"

"No thanks, I only came to save you from the devil's claws. Got plans tonight."

"Oh romantic stroll by the beach?"

"In the mountains, actually."

"Don't have sex in the caves - we still need you to be able to stand up straight tomorrow."

"I prefer the grass - wet and soft. And it doesn't leave scars on my back. It rained this afternoon."

"That's too much information," Sakura scrunched her nose in disgust.

"At least I'm not _boring_, confining the sex to only the bedroom."

"Hey, no personal attacks here."

"I'm just saying. You and your mystery boyfriend should get out more."

"You just want to know who he is."

"It's not Neji, right?"

Sakura sighed for the umpteenth time that day. "No, it isn't."

"I just gotta make sure."

"I am one hundred percent _not_ sleeping with Hyuuga Neji."

"Trying announcing it over the sound system - maybe she'll believe you then."

"What is she, twelve?"

"Love always throws us women back into that little girl shell - even if we look like we can brave the storm, underneath all that tough exterior, we're still scared like twelve-year-olds."

"Sounds like you know it well."

"No shit."

Sakura's eyes widened a fraction. "Does he know?"

"Of course not."

"Yamanaka Ino!"

"You just committed the worse romantic crime in history, I am _so_ not taking any love advice from you right now, Haruno. You probably need to build your reputation from scratch for five years before anyone comes to you with relationship problems. Or you could speed up the process by telling me who your mystery man is."

Sakura huffed. "Just think it through, Ino. The 'crime' I committed tonight didn't cost me anything, but what you're doing is walking on thin ice. Solidify it before you fall neck deep into that freezing water."

"That's exactly what I'm trying to do."

"By _not_ telling him?"

"He's not ready."

"Neither are you."

"Stop making sense, please."

"Go," Sakura turned from her blonde friend. "Go for that mountain stroll and figure something out. Just remember - no sex in the caves."

"Whatever." Ino tsked and teleported away.

Shaking her head in silent mirth, Sakura opened her door. The familiar feeling of not being alone in the house struck again, and Sakura quickly flipped on the lights.

Oynx eyes met emerald ones.

"This is getting familiar."

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><p><strong>Things are going to start moving along now, finally. Until next time, leave a review!<strong>

**xoxo,  
>Lady Aren<strong>


	11. Chapter 11

**Yeah, I'm back. Am writing more. Sorry for the long wait guys! Your reviews are really what makes me want to continue despite working all day. Would like to give a shoutout to WinterLuvNaruto for your PM. Thank you for understanding *hearts***

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><p>"Before I jump headfirst into conclusions, are you here for business or pleasure?"<p>

"A meeting of both," Itachi answered suavely.

Sakura narrowed her eyes. "Well, that's tough."

"It is not that difficult to achieve."

"Fine," Sakura pushed past her way into the kitchen. "But I'm having dinner first."

"I was under the impression that you had dinner with Neji-san and Tenten-san."

Sakura paused in her footsteps. "Have you been checking up on me?"

"I apologize that I might have chanced upon your conversation by mistake."

"Mm," Sakura mumbled distractedly while she cracked an egg. Maybe two. She was really hungry, after all. "Wait, what?"

Itachi remained silent as his eyes conveyed his inquiry.

"You mean, you heard my entire conversation with Ino?"

"Unfortunately, yes. Of course, I will not repeat what I have heard to anyone else."

"Well, uh, thanks," Sakura muttered. "Did you want some omelette?"

"I would appreciate it," Itachi replied vaguely.

"Itachi," Sakura said a little curtly, turning around to give him a glare from the stove, "do you want to eat or not?"

"If it does not trouble you, yes."

"No, it isn't any trouble," Sakura replied out of courtesy, completely exasperated with his formality. "And can you please stop talking to me like I were the Hokage-sama?"

"Once we get the business out of the way," Itachi promised.

Sakura grinned. "That's more like it. Didn't we already covered the business part this morning?"

"I believe we agreed on some practice for the execution of our curriculum earlier."

"Oh yeah," memory struck Sakura as she set two plates on the table and motioned for Itachi to sit opposite her.

The two of them finished up their dinner quickly, and Sakura left the plates in the sink before hurrying into the living room, eager to start practicing the delivery of their lesson to the newly initiated ANBU members. She thought that the method she had hatched with Itachi was pretty interesting, not to mention effective.

Sakura found Itachi sitting cross-legged on the floor, palms facing up and resting on his knees with his eyes closed in meditation and preparation. Not willing to endure the cold of the marble floor within the comforts of her own home, Sakura found her usual comfortable spot on the sofa, and mimicked the position Itachi was in.

"Are you ready?" Itachi asked with that soft lilt of his.

"Yes."

The Sharingan-wielder opened his eyes then, revealing red orbs with three tomoes dancing hypnotically. The seasoned ANBU forced herself to relax to let Itachi's genjutsu take over her, her well-honed instincts kicking in and putting up a good fight in resisting Itachi's advances. Gradually, she felt herself pulled in to the alternate reality that the skilful Uchiha had created, and found herself standing next to the man himself in the middle of a dark abyss of nowhere.

"Your first lesson would be genjutsu within a genjutsu? Really?"

"They should learn to cast three genjutsus simultaneously."

"I know, but in the first lesson?"

Itachi nodded.

Sakura let out a long breath. "I can't believe I'm creating hell with you."

"I find it rather enjoyable."

Sakura thanked the gods that her genjutsu training had been with Kakashi. No matter how sadistic her ex-sensei was, Itachi was easily ten times worse.

Itachi had always thought himself a controlled man. He was brought up this way – having his emotions in check at all times, and maintaining a cool façade through it all, no matter the circumstances. The Uchiha clan prided themselves on two things, Sharingan and control, and as the heir to the head of the clan, Itachi was drilled the Uchiha code ever since the day he was born.

He quickly learned as a child that crying only got him more severe punishment, and voicing out his feelings were taboo. If his cousins could read his expression easily, there was something wrong. Itachi learned to watch himself at all times, keeping track of his every move, every fleeting emotion, and like the genius he was, he quickly mastered the art of it. Mikoto was the only one who was willing to show her love for him openly, although in front of others she was likewise substantially more distant. Fugaku was more like a teacher well-respected from afar, who cared for him but never got too close.

Itachi was very aware that if it hadn't been for his mother, he would probably have lived life as the Ice Block of Konoha.

But right then, as he watched Sakura's body shimmy in a gold, embroidered floor-length dress, lustful emerald eyes staring boldly in his direction even as she entertained the male whose arm she was attached to, Itachi could feel his control chipping away.

After showing Sakura what he had in mind for the genjutsu lesson using genjutsu, he had let Sakura cast a genjutsu over him so as to see what she had in mind for the seduction lesson. He had been immediately transported into a ballroom that was holding some sort of charity gala, and Itachi strongly suspected that this was possibly one of the missions that Sakura had been sent on to seduce information from the daimyo, because of the intricacy of the whole setting, from the design of the pillars to the individual foods present on the buffet table.

But he realized that he hadn't wanted to pay attention to any of his surroundings, because before he had recollected himself enough to attempt to seek Sakura out, a pair of beautiful green eyes had caught his attention. She was dressed finely, tasteful diamonds hanging gracefully from her earlobes, defining a well-sculptured heart-shaped face, and beautifully formed lips that were set neutrally, giving no hint as to her thoughts. Her golden dress hugged her curvy figure modestly, the one-shoulder strap showing off slender arms and emphasizing the length of her nape. And the look in her eyes told him that she was all his for the taking, if he wanted to.

And he did.

There was nothing more attractive than the knowledge that someone was attracted to you. That was lesson number one when he began his seduction lessons with Kakashi. It was icing on the cake that the _someone_ who wanted you was someone as beautiful as Haruno Sakura. Her entire poise was different, she was no longer the professional Itachi was used to seeing at work, nor was she the woman he had been with in bed. She held her face at an angle that suggested a hint of regality, shoulders back and spine upright with just a bit of arch in her back, promising raw sexuality underneath the seemingly arrogant posture.

If Itachi hadn't been taught the art of seduction, he would have been completely enraptured by the woman. As it was, he was already dying to fuck her.

Even as flashes of their nights together came into his mind's eye, Itachi kept his face neutral as he watched her break away from her male companion with the excuse that she had to use the ladies' room, and made a detour before approaching him from his right. Her jet black hair propelled her secretive eyes into a whole new cloud of mystery, glittering with promise of the wildest ride of his life if he would just say yes to her.

"You look like you could use a drink," she purred, holding out a glass of bubbling champagne for him.

Unable to resist, he took it from her outstretched hand and clinked his glass with hers. He took a sip and looked at her as she smiled at him expectantly.

"Thank you."

"My pleasure," Sakura continued in the low, seductive husk, reminding him of the so many other more provocative connotations that the word carried. She continued, "And where is your companion?"

"I came alone," Itachi replied unapologetically.

"That doesn't mean you have to leave alone."

Itachi glanced up from his glass abruptly. "Does it not?"

Sakura smiled lightly, moving closer so that he could take in a huge breath of her mild perfume without trying too hard, and gently took his hand and placed her champagne glass in his. "This may help."

Her smile widened at his look of surprise, and before he knew it, she had carefully pulled away and moments later, he saw that she had returned to the right arm of her previous male companion. Then, her eyes met his again, and the raw sexual energy in her gaze had him almost hardening on the spot.

If he had been a lesser man, the years that his father and spent training him to school his emotions would have gone down the drain the moment he entered this genjutsu. Fortunately, the Uchiha name was not to be trifled with, and Itachi was thankful that even though he wasn't in full control, he at least still had partial control.

But then the scene before him disappeared, and Itachi found himself back in his cross-legged position, the pink-haired female grinning at him from an elevated position on the sofa. The glee in her eyes communicating her knowledge of her effect on him.

"How's that for a first lesson? Not too much, is it?" Sakura crooned.

Deciding to wipe the smirk off her face, Itachi replied, "Perhaps we can go even _deeper_."

She abruptly stopped grinning, "Yeah? Deeper how?"

Itachi didn't give her time to react. The last word had barely left her lips before he had her flat on her back on the sofa, with his larger, warmer body looming over hers. Itachi smirked inwardly when he saw how her green eyes glazed over for a second before refocusing on their proximity. She swallowed visibly, but he wasn't planning on making her feel at ease any time soon.

"We should teach them the things that should happen when they manage to get their target alone," he whispered huskily next to her ear, lightly trailing down the length of her jaw. He felt her goose bumps that matched those of his, and reveled in the knowledge he affected her as much as she affected him. "For instance," he began, "this."

He raised her arms and locked them above her head firmly, tracing his tongue languidly down the column of her neck while his other hand began unbuttoning her blouse one by one. Itachi had thought that Sakura couldn't have looked more civilian than in those clothes she wore to dinner with Tenten. Somehow it made her look more soft and more pliant, and Itachi had knew then that he wasn't going home that night. No, he was going straight to her apartment to await her return.

Itachi would have been lying if he had said he hadn't been waiting for this moment.

"Or," he continued, after slipping her bra straps off her shoulders, "this." When his hot mouth enveloped an exposed breast, Sakura snapped into action and struggled against his grasp, panting softly.

"I – I think we should stop here…"

Itachi circled his tongue around a hardened peak. This time, Sakura gasped and arched helplessly against him, bringing their bodies closer together as she tried to find reprieve from his restraint. Ignoring her pleas, Itachi trailed his mouth to the other breast, teasing the hardened pink nipple. Then he bit down on it between his teeth.

There was a choked scream from the pink-haired female beneath him, who played dirty and sent a burst of chakra through his system to release his hold on her wrists before he found himself straddled by a half-naked woman with fierce green eyes.

"Lesson's over," she announced, and proceeded to attack his lips with fervor.

Her hands worked frantically to divest him of his clothing, but his hands weren't idle either. He quickly unhooked her bra and threw it somewhere on the floor together with her blouse, and unbuttoned her pants impatiently. He ran his hands up and down her sides, memorizing the curve of her waist, the dip in her back, the fullness of her breasts. Itachi found that he liked how she squeaked every time he caressed her sensitive breasts, and how she always arched into his touching, silently begging for more.

Suddenly he was aware of nails on his back, and he realized that somewhere along the way Sakura had successfully removed the clothes on his upper body. Itachi stood up quickly, their lips still engaged in a battle of tongues and with her legs wrapped securely around his lower torso.

Knowing the entire blueprint of her house by heart, Itachi easily made his way to her bedroom, as distracted as he was. He placed her gently on her bed, settling comfortably between her legs as he continued his ministrations southwards. Sakura fisted her hands in his hair when he dipped his tongue into her belly button. He made a quick work of her pants and underwear, slipping them off her slender legs and leaving them in a heap on the floor. She didn't let him continue though, guiding his head back up to hers and slipping her warm tongue into his mouth.

Settling his arms on either side of her head, Itachi took his time exploring the warm cavern of her mouth, running his tongue along her teeth and caressing her tongue with his. By the time he was done with his mini exploration, she already had him out of his pants and her hands were running teasingly along his thick length standing at attention.

Itachi groaned, burying his nose in her scent along her nape as she continued her naughty ministrations in sync with his hand kneading her breast. She giggled as he bit down lightly on her neck when she ran her thumb across the tip of his cock, swiping away the pre-cum.

The woman was going to be the death of him if she found torturing him so deliciously funny.

His hand left her breast to reach for her wrist, removing them from his nether regions and positioning himself against her warm, slippery pussy. He rubbed their body together deliciously, inadvertently letting out an animalistic growl that had her moaning under him. She moved her body together with his, and Itachi could feel the building up of the desire to reach the edge and topple over it.

He ran his fingers through her hair affectionately, emerald eyes shining with desire reflected his dark orbs. Never breaking the eye contact, Itachi entered her in one swift motion, his breath stopping in his throat as he felt her warmth clamp down _hard_ on him. She was so hot, so wet, and all for him. She wriggled her hips impatiently, telling him to move, but Itachi always did things at his own pace.

Slowly, he withdrew from her, only to thrust with speed and force that only ninja could accomplish.

"Itachi!" Sakura squeaked hoarsely, unable to form a longer sentence than his name. She closed her eyes and her lips parted as she adjusted to how deep he was embedded in her warmth.

"Look at me," Itachi commanded softly, willing her lazy eyes to open.

Jade eyes met his, shy, yet pleading him to move. She wriggled her hips again.

Itachi gradually formed a rhythm, thoroughly enjoying every slick thrust, the way her wet nether lips slid over his thick length, the way her walls contracted to pull him deeper, and to keep him there even as he withdrew. He particularly liked how she took in every inch of him, and he filled every inch of her, as if they were made just for each other. But as need built up and demanded release, Itachi increased his pace, easing her wanting pussy as well as his own dick. It wasn't about the details anymore, it was simply about reaching that peak and leaping over it. _Together._

As he pistoned in and out more fervently, Sakura crossed her ankles behind his back, forcing him deeper with every thrust, and keeping him there longer with his every penetration. He could feel her approaching orgasm with every tremble, as did his.

"I-Itachi…_oh_…"

He growled in reply, increasing his pace. He was losing his rhythm soon, and she knew it. She raised her hips to meet his, allowing him to hilt himself deep inside of her pussy, her walls contracted faster and clamping down on his cock harder. Her nails dug into his back, but he really could care less right then.

"_Itachi!_"

She spasmed around him, drawing his orgasm out as he spilled his seed into her. He bit down on her breast as he came in spurts, his muscles tensed as he rode out his own high.

Itachi put as much weight on his lover as he could without suffocating her under him, breathing heavily next to her ear as he came down from his orgasm. When he found his strength again, he pulled out of her and rolled over onto the bed, placing an arm around her waist and pulled her soft body to him.

Sakura sighed softly as she curled around him, arms wounding around his neck and laying her head on his broad chest in a gesture of contentment. Eyes still closed, Itachi stroked her bare back, trailing along the dip of her spine and caressing her hips.

He felt Sakura smile against his skin. "You do realize that none of our new recruits are female and hence what just happened wouldn't be of much use to them at all, right?"

Itachi smirked wryly. "I am positive they will all manage to learn _something_."

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><p><strong>Happy Labour Day, if you're in a country that celebrates Labour Day on the first of May. Tadah!<strong>

**xoxo  
>Lady Aren<strong>


	12. Chapter 12

The morning light spilled in, setting the room in an ethereal glow. Sakura shifted in her sleep, shielding her sensitive eyes from the light using his arm. The young ANBU captain was already awake, but unwilling to move from his comfortable position next to Sakura. If he moved, Sakura would wake immediately, judging by how lightly she was breathing - she was on the verge of coming into consciousness. Besides, he rather liked the feel of her relaxed body next to his, which reminded him of serenity and the better side in life.

Life as a shinobi often kept him wound up and alert, but being with Sakura right there was like being covered with a blanket of peace, a kind of relaxation of the senses that he had almost never allowed himself to indulge in. Even at home he was kept on his toes by his watchful parents, a younger brother that looked up to his every move, and the possibility of a spying clan member. Not everyone agreed that he would make a suitable heir.

Next to her, however, he could let go for a bit. He could temporarily ignore the existence of the Uchiha clan, the responsibilities, the expectations. He could indulge in physical pleasures freely, and enjoy reprieve from the stressful life that came with the territory.

In the back of his mind he was very well aware that this would not last forever. Somewhere along the way, this arrangement would either end or become something more, and whether it was the former or the latter neither bode well with the Uchiha genius. If it came to an end, he would not enjoy these periodic relaxations, but if it became something more it was inevitable that Sakura would be brought into the messy politics in his life. Then instead of him suffering alone, _she_ would be dragged into the whole ordeal as well. He wasn't sure if he liked the idea. And truth be told, he didn't want to think about it, but somehow, out of habit, he always thought ahead.

Sometimes he wondered how Sakura felt about it all. He'd heard oral reassurances and confirmations, but more often than not he had a gut feeling that Sakura was still hiding something from him and from her friends. And since the gut feeling had yet to fail him in battle, he trusted it. She was never truly open, though she gave that impression, but Itachi supposed it was a good trait, what with their job description. Itachi wasn't altogether sure if she was in this with him because of loneliness, of boredom, or some other reason that he was unaware of, but nevertheless he was still glad of their arrangement. Itachi could only hope that she was getting as much out of this as he was. He believed in taking as much as giving.

Itachi had never thought that he could share something more than an acquaintance with his brother's pink-haired teammate. In fact, it had never crossed his mind until that fateful night. She had always been just _there_; she never really caught his interest in a mind-blowing way, but he supposed she hadn't been trying to get his attention anyway. Their paths simply didn't cross at the right time, until the night at the bar.

It was rather interesting how things worked, Itachi mused. Now that she had his full attention, he began to notice just how much of a chameleon she was. She played her role so well, whether it was as a part of Team Seven, as Head Medic of ANBU or as Tsunade-sama's apprentice cum assistant. She executed her duties flawlessly. With such an ability to adapt into whatever role she was in, Itachi was rather surprised she even had time to just be herself.

Itachi found himself hoping that she was her true self when she was with him. She wouldn't have specifically developed a character just for being with him, would she? At this point in time, Itachi could not be a hundred percent positive. On a certain level, she was truly a dangerous character.

His musings were cut short, however, as the body beside him tensed and stirred. Her parched throat emitted a cracked groan as her sleep-filled eyes fluttered open momentarily.

"Why do you look so awake," Sakura mumbled sleepily.

Itachi tucked a loose pink strand of hair behind her ear in response.

She opened her eyes fully this time to look at him. Her eyes looked strained, and Itachi quickly shifted his thumb to rub the sleep out of her eyes.

"You make me feel like a baby," she said with a pout.

"You sleep too deeply."

"You tend to have that relaxing effect. It's like you're lavender oil or something."

Itachi didn't know whether to be offended, being compared to lavender oil. In general, shinobi felt a greater sense of accomplishment when their name was used in conjunction with awe or fear. _Not_ relaxation ointments.

Sakura grinned at his lack of response. "Or maybe it's just the sex."

"Hn," was all he deigned to reply.

"Anyway," Sakura said, untangling her arms from his, "I have a shift at eight. You want some breakfast?"

"Is it possible for you to eat something other than cereal for breakfast?" Itachi asked pointedly.

"Occasionally I have tofu and porridge for breakfast. Maybe once a year. What's your deal with cereal anyway? It increases your brainpower."

Itachi remained silent as the mob of pink hair disappeared into the bathroom, door left unclosed and the shower turned on. He threw on the pair of pants that had been left on the floor last night (it would be so much more convenient if he had a couple of fresh clothes here), and made his way to the kitchen.

The fridge contained eggs and fresh vegetables, while a little digging in her cupboards revealed ingredients for miso soup. He placed the uncooked rice into the cooker and set it to cook, while he turned on the stove to boil the eggs and make miso soup.

He was almost done when Sakura's fresh scent from the shower came wafting into the kitchen, and said woman appeared moments later, dressed in a casual shirt and boy shorts. She wasn't wearing a bra. It was at times like these that Itachi wished he didn't have such keen observation.

"You dislike cereal that much, huh," Sakura commented jokingly as she scooped porridge into two bowls.

Sakura sat down at the dining table with the steaming bowls as Itachi brought in the pot of miso soup and boiled eggs.

"I didn't know you knew how to cook."

"I merely copied what my mother did," Itachi explained as he picked up his chopsticks.

"Still, you didn't have to," Sakura said, genuinely grateful. "Thank you."

"Do you usually not cook?"

"Well," Sakura said with a gulp of her porridge. "I kinda suck at it."

"It comes with either practice or the Sharingan," Itachi said wryly.

Sakura burst into laughter.

Sakura was about to take her lunch break when Sasuke knocked on her door.

"Come in!"

The familiar mob of black hair came into her view, and Sakura greeted her teammate cheerily with a smile. Catching a glimpse of his rather sombre face, however, with a dull light in his eyes, Sakura immediately grew worried.

"Is something the matter, Sasuke-kun?"

"…"

"Is Naruto not coping well?"

Sasuke glanced at her abruptly. "Well, yes, but that's not important right now."

"What is, then?"

"…"

"Is someone hurt badly?"

"No."

"Are you hurt or anything?"

"No."

"Anything bad happen?"

"No, not really."

"Do you not like your new team?"

"No."

"Sasuke-kun?" Sakura said finally, exasperated.

Her dark-haired teammate turned his gaze fully on her. Sakura felt offended that they were slightly accusing. _He_ was the one being mysterious and ambiguous here! She wasn't some sort of mind-reading psychic.

"Itachi only came home this morning."

"And?" Sakura asked impatiently. They'd had this conversation before.

"Was he with you?"

Sakura remained silent. What did he want her to say? Did he just want confirmation? Or would he prefer if she'd lied?

"Why don't you ask him?"

"He said he was."

"Then why are you asking me?"

"Can't you guys stop?"

"Why?"

"Why not?"

"Sasuke…"

"Are the two of you serious about this?"

It occurred to Sakura then that Sasuke never truly understood the nature of her relationship with Itachi, and the elder brother never sought to rectify the fact. But she supposed she understood Itachi's dilemma. What could he say? _I'm screwing around with your teammate for fun, no strings attached_? Or what was she supposed to say? _I'm sleeping with your brother because…I don't really know, but I'm sleeping with him anyway. And no, we're not seeing each other or anything like that_.

Yeah, she could see how well that would go down.

"Sakura?"

"Can I just ask you to please leave it alone?" Sakura pleaded.

"This…isn't about getting back at me for something or another, is it?"

Sakura rounded on him at the accusation. "_What_? No! I don't hold any grudges against you, Sasuke-kun, I thought we were clear about that when we broke up."

He flinched. Sasuke was exceptionally good at masking emotions, but Sakura had been trained to detect even the slightest hint. It helped that being in ANBU and interacting with Itachi had improved her skills dramatically. But even though she could read him, she was confused. They'd broken up so long ago - why was he bringing up the past?

"All right."

"Sasuke-kun…this really has nothing to do with you," Sakura said gently. "In a good way."

He nodded mutely.

"Anyway," Sakura said, hoping to change the subject, "have you talked with Naruto? I have to pretend I don't know anything about it, but he hasn't come and talked to me either, so I'm getting a little worried."

"He wouldn't even fight with me when I asked if he wanted to spar," Sasuke replied rather dejectedly. "For some reason he was very sure that I got in."

"Well, obviously you did since you didn't say that you didn't."

"But I didn't say I did, either."

"We all know ANBU can't announce that they're in ANBU. Naruto may not be Shikamaru but he's not oblivious either."

"Maybe he'd be more willing to talk to you."

"Well, he _is _due for his physical," Sakura thought out loud. "Speaking of which, so are you."

"Meeting with Unit One right now," Sasuke muttered incoherently, before disappearing with a flick.

Sakura scrunched up her face in disgust. She was _so_ going to deck Shisui for teaching Sasuke the Body Flicker technique. It made her life so much harder.

Resigned, Sakura grabbed her purse and decided that the sooner she finished her afternoon shift, the faster she would get to Naruto. However, the plans were foiled when Shizune's head peeped around the door.

"Sakura, Hokage-sama asked for you to go to her office."

"Now?"

"Yeah," Shizune gave her a look of pity and understanding. While Tsunade generally let Shizune alone because she was running as the director of the hospital, she didn't extend the same courtesy to her younger apprentice, and thus despite Sakura's equally heavy shifts and responsibilities, she was still expected to be at her Hokage's beck and call.

Not that she minded particularly, but Sakura did feel a little suffocated every now and then. Not to mention feeling slightly abused and taken advantage of.

"I'll be there," Sakura reassured the busy woman. "Thanks."

"Oh, and could you feed Tonton as well, on your way out?"

Sakura smiled kindly. "Sure. Go busy, Shizune-san."

Sakura followed after Shizune's departure, chewing on a sandwich she had grabbed from the deli on the way to the Hokage Towers. Upon reaching the entrance, however, Sakura felt something off. Tsunade had cast a sound-proofing jutsu. Sakura hurried her footsteps, stopping only to get some food into Tonton. It was possible that Tsunade had called for another ANBU meeting.

Sakura had only raised her hand to knock on the door when she heard her shishou's voice through the door. "Come in."

Obeying immediately, Sakura opened the door, only to find Naruto standing up with a fist in the air, shouting, "BUT OBAA-CHAN IT'S NOT FAIR!"

"What isn't?"

Having been too riled up to notice the entrance of his teammate, Naruto gasped in surprised and turned to face Sakura.

"SAKURA-CHAN, TALK SOME SENSE INTO OBAA-CHAN OVER HERE!"

"Is she drunk again?"

"Sakura," Tsunade warned in an exasperated tone.

"THE OLD HAG REFUSES TO LET ME INTO ANBU!"

"Isn't there some sort of test that you have to go through?"

"AND SHE DIDN'T LET ME PASS!"

"Naruto," the blonde Hokage snapped. "If you can't even pass the captains' examination I don't even have the chance to vet you. Try again for the next one."

"But the next one is next year! I want to be in ANBU now!" The loud blonde whined.

"Then I suggest you work hard and figure out what went wrong."

Naruto was about to open his mouth again when Sakura spoke up.

"Naruto-kun," Sakura said firmly, "It is a matter of protocol, shishou can't bend rules for you."

"Sakura-_chaaaannnnn_…" Naruto pouted.

If the whole situation wasn't so serious, she would actually have thought that he was kind of adorable when he did that. Naruto could still be childish at times, but Sakura attributed it to the fact that both she and Sasuke indulged him. To a lesser extent, Kakashi did as well.

"I didn't even know you went for the exams," Sakura lied calmly through her teeth.

"Well, I wanted to surprise you!"

Sakura smiled as she ruffled the blonde's hair. "Surprise me next year?"

"Hmmph."

"I'm going for lunch right now, you got time to spare?"

Naruto clasped his hand into a fist, eyes alit with determination. "No! I am going to train right now and become so kick-ass awesome that YOU," he pointed a finger at Tsunade who was rubbing her temple, "will have no choice but to let me into ANBU by the end of the month!"

"I'm going Ichiraku today," Sakura mentioned softly.

The poor blonde looked torn for a split second. "Alright! I will train right after ramen! Let's go Sakura-chan! There is no time to lose!"

Tsunade breathed a sigh of relief as the door closed behind two-thirds of Team Seven. She could always count on Sakura.

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><p><strong>Yay, another chapter up! Want to give special thanks to <em>Challa<em> for pointing out my mistake in Chapter 7! 3**

**xoxo  
>Lady Aren<strong>


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